The Magnificent and Magical Seven
by MissDoctorDonna
Summary: What if our favourite seven were possessed of magical abilities, a la J K Rowling's Harry Potter 'verse? This is how I imagine the boys may meet up, set in a modern day magical world. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**All things Harry Potter belong to J K Rowling. All things Magnificent Seven belong to someone else too. Everything that falls between, much like sofa change, is mine.** **This just flowed from my fingers after a prompt from a fellow fan of the boys. If you're not familiar with the Potter world, then this probably won't make a lot of sense. If you're a purist M7 fan, now's the time to mosey on.**

Ezra Standish watched his colleagues efficiently and quietly rummaging through his office from his vantage point on top of a tall bookshelf. None of the FBI minions thought to look up, so none saw the small, jade-eyed weasel curled up with just the tip of a quivering nose, long whiskers and two white front paws peeking over the edge. Thanks to the foe glass that one of his favourite uncles had gifted him with, Ezra had seen them coming in time to transform and scamper up to his present hiding place. It had been a regular occurrence for months now; every week, two or three agents would storm into his office and rifle through his files, trying to find evidence that he was corrupt. They had yet to find anything, but it didn't stop them from trying.

Grimacing, Ezra once again cursed his mother and her latest gift of a very expensive automobile. Maude Standish was an exceptionally talented and wealthy witch, who was appalled at her 'sweet baby boy's' choice of career and was determined to bring him back into her circle of influence. Admittedly, joining a law enforcement agency, particularly a muggle one, hadn't been high on Ezra's choice of careers either. But when he'd been approached by a recruiter at Harvard – another life choice he'd made to irritate his mother - he'd decided to give it a try, knowing exactly how much it would annoy his interfering, overbearing, elitist mother. In that goal, he'd succeeded beyond his wildest dreams, but otherwise the experience hadn't left him particularly fulfilled. Knowing that he was making the world a little safer one bust at a time just didn't compensate him for all the time he spent in the sordid world of Muggle criminals. Particularly when the he also knew that the criminals he managed to arrest would most likely end up on the streets again due to their lawyer's competence, the DA's incompetence, or the general leniency of the legal system - most likely due to a combination of all three.

As soon as he'd driven his new car into the car park of the Atlanta FBI office, he'd been spotting by a colleague who'd interrogated him on the car's origin. Since the colleague was only a passing acquaintance, Ezra hadn't felt the need to explain himself to the nosy man. He'd since requested a transfer and started fresh in the Denver FBI office, but the rumours had followed him and it hadn't taken long for his fresh start to sour.

Due to his exemplary record and high arrest and conviction rate, which he'd attained through pure talent and hard work rather than any magical means, his colleagues at the Bureau tended to be jealous and bitter. As a result, he had made no friends or allies within the department and always felt he had to watch his back against both sides of the crime war. It wasn't an unusual occurrence and Ezra was long used to enforced solitude. As a child, he'd been moved around constantly and encouraged by his mother to only befriend the children of the rich and powerful pureblood families and use them for his own purposes. The problem was that the other children had been given similar advice by their parents, leading everyone to form shallow and brittle links with each other that were easily betrayed and broken, leaving Ezra feeling even more alone and worthless.

Given his family's influences, his need to conceal some of his more unusual magical abilities and his affluence, Ezra now had certain tastes that were deemed snobbish along with habits that were seen as downright antisocial by his peers. Because of these factors, none had tried to befriend him at school or work, soundly rejecting his infrequent and timid attempts at friendship. After being rebuffed a number of times, sometimes quite brutally, the Southerner had quickly learned to keep to himself.

In fact it was safe to say that, aside from two cousins, the only friends Ezra had ever had were the pets he managed to hide from his mother and the wild animals he encountered. Unusual even in the magical world, Ezra had been born a metamorphmagus and could transform at will into almost anything or anyone he chose. He could even transform into a phoenix, although he only took the form without any of the creature's magical properties. His nanny had discovered his ability when she'd entered the nursery to find he'd transformed into a tiger, after reading a storybook about one that came to tea, and was busily stalking her pet rat.

After informing Maude of her son's latest magical manifestation, Nanny had immediately resigned stating she'd been trained to care for children, not animals. There followed the first of many lectures and punishments he'd received from his mother over appropriate behavior and appearances. The discovery that he could change into other animals and people had been made on his own, when he'd fallen from a gargoyle whilst exploring his uncle's castle at five years old and subconsciously transformed into a snowy owl to save himself from certain death. Another time, he'd been squeezed into a dark corner trying to make himself as small as possible to avoid a strapping from his latest tutor and found himself in the form of a small house mouse. Teaching himself the control needed to prevent spontaneous transformations took him a few months, but he was nothing if not a quick student and was motivated by the need to keep his abilities from Maude. Even at the tender age of four, he'd not liked the speculative gleam that had appeared in his mother's eye when she'd looked at him in tiger form and experiences as he aged reinforced his instinctive belief that she would use what he could do to her own advantage and his own detriment.

Maude had been reluctant to allow him pets, disliking the dirt and noise she claimed surrounded them, but eventually allowed him an owl so that she could use it to correspond with him during their frequent separations. Then when he went to school Ezra had managed to befriend a wild kneazel that had been running rampant in the surrounding grounds and terrorising the gamekeeper and students, naming him Leonard when the cranky creature decided to adopt the unusually powerful boy wizard. Ezra had had to apply for a licence to keep the animal, but given his impressive pureblood lineage and also the fact that he was doing the school a favour by reining in the behaviour of the grumpy, vicious kneazel, the Ministry of Magic was happy to hand over a licence. Leonard was positively ancient now and rarely left his cushion on Ezra's couch, but he was still affectionate towards the only wizard he'd ever liked. Ezra now had one of Leonard's progeny as a livelier pet, a half kneazel - half Norwegian Forest cat called Achacius, who was besotted with Ezra and the bane of the life of Ezra's spectacled owl, Horatia.

Truthfully, was it not for the small amount of good he felt he was doing for the community of unsuspecting muggles in Atlanta and now Denver; Ezra would have quit a long time ago and spent his time at home with his pets. Thanks to large inheritances from his father and one of his maternal aunts, Ezra really didn't need to work at all and could afford the very best in everything, which was a major reason behind the rumours of his corruption within the FBI. Explaining that his extravagant clothing and tastes were paid for by a large stash of wizarding money in the American branch of the wizard bank, Gringott's, just wasn't an option. On muggle record, he earned a reasonable salary due to the nature of his work and his abilities at it, but certainly not enough to support the lavish lifestyle he led. Hence the rumours of corruption that had snowballed into the current avalanche of antipathy he was experiencing.

Watching the men give up and leave his normally pristine office in a state of complete disarray, Ezra ground his sharp little teeth in frustration and scrunched his furry features up into a scowl. Perhaps it was time to admit defeat and move on to a less annoying and dangerous livelihood, like dragon taming. He'd always been good with animals and he'd heard that Hungary was lovely this time of year.

TBC⨪


	2. Chapter 2

**All things Harry Potter belong to J K Rowling. All things Magnificent Seven belong to someone else too. Everything that falls between, much like sofa change, is mine.** **This just flowed from my fingers after a prompt from a fellow fan of the boys. If you're not familiar with the Potter world, then this probably won't make a lot of sense. If you're a purist M7 fan, now's the time to mosey on.**

Huddling closer to the tree, Vin Tanner fluffed his feathers up a little more to try and trap some warm air in them. Currently in his prairie falcon form, he was perched high in a tree in a deluge waiting on a dark wizard called Eli Joe to make an appearance. He'd been tracking the man through several states, ever since Eli Joe had set him up to take the fall for the death of Jess Kincaid, a popular shopkeeper in the wizarding town of Tascosa, Texas. The bounty hunter had managed to escape the clutches of the Patrol Aurors appointed by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Texas Branch, in Tascosa by the skin of his teeth. Fortunately, paperwork wasn't a specialty of his and he'd never gotten around to registering all of the forms he could take as an Animagi, so they weren't expecting him to transform into a mink and scamper through the bars. The protection charms and alarms that they'd cast over the cell alerted them to his absence, but not to the small dark brown animal in the shadows of the filing cabinet. Discovering a hole in the wall made by rats, Vin had grinned a small, sharp toothed and victorious smile, before making for the great outdoors and freedom.

Now Vin tracked the man who could clear his name and take the bounty off his own shaggy head. Hungry, cold, lonely and miserable, he shook his head vigorously and glared upwards after a particularly large drip fell on his head, snapping his beak irritably at the unrepentant clouds. Having waited for an hour, he was just about ready to give up when he saw the same wizard from yesterday emerge from the bar opposite. Since the bar was unplottable and as such invisible to muggles, he knew the man was a wizard, even though he couldn't sense any overt magic in him. Tall and thin, the blond gave off an aura of danger and menace that seemed almost laughable given his level of inebriation, but no discernible scent of magic. Vin had discovered at an early age that he could smell magic in people and places. A long, black duster was wrapped around him, as the fair haired man tried to protect himself from the rain. Another man emerged from the building soon after him, this one even taller with a large moustache and a hearty laugh. Clapping a genial hand to the thin man's shoulder, the taller one started to subtly herd his friend in the direction of a gaudy red Chevy pickup. Tilting his head, Vin wondered at the pull he felt when he saw the two wizards, particularly the blond.

Deciding that he'd had enough of sitting in the rain and that Eli Joe wasn't going to show as his informant had told him, Vin shook out his feathers and swooped down to land lightly in the back of the Chevy. His curiosity had been piqued by the odd duo and was clamouring to be satisfied. Changing from a bedraggled prairie falcon to an equally drenched mink, Vin crawled into an old screwed up blanket that was wedged between a toolbox and the back of the cab. Wriggling and squirming against the blanket, he endeavoured to dry out as much as possible before settling in to lick his coat dry as he sheltered in the folds of the blanket. It smelled rather musky, as though someone had used it for some sort of outdoor friskiness... Shaking his head and sneezing, Vin pawed at his nose and whiskers desperately as he suddenly identified the smell, trying very hard to rid himself of both the smell and taste that he'd inadvertently rubbed over himself. The rain was suddenly looking inviting and he stuck his head out far enough to lap at a small pool of rainwater.

Chris Larabee was not a happy man. Seething with restrained rage, he fumed as he sat in a sodden heap in the passenger seat of Buck Wilmington's pickup truck. It wasn't the first time that his old friend had hauled his ass out of a bar, but it never ceased to be annoying as hell and the fact that he was being dragged somewhere other than another bar, his house or Buck's apartment just added fuel to the fire. Since the deaths of his wife and son, Chris Larabee – legend of the Auror world - had become a virtual squib and an actual alcoholic. No-one was sure why his magic had lapsed into latency, but some of the more knowledgeable wizards thought it likely due to a combination of psychosomatic repression due to survivor's guilt and PTSD, and the vast amounts of alcohol he consumed on a daily basis. All Chris knew was that magic had taken his family, so he didn't need it or want it now.

Casting apprehensive sideways glances towards his friend, Buck gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. Chris and he had met in Auror training and become instant friends; two sides of the same coin, with Chris tending towards the more serious and Buck being a perpetual clown. The two combined raised some serious hell, cutting a swathe through many towns as they fought, womanized and caroused. Until a pretty red-haired witch with Irish eyes and a wicked temper knocked Chris Larabee out cold in front of an entire restaurant full of people for asking if he could take her home. Sarah Connolly was a class act and it had been lust at first sight for Chris, a lust that had never abated but had been tempered by love, respect and trust. Once he'd come to, with the help of a glass of water thrown at him by a guffawing Buck, and apologized profusely before stammered his way into asking Sarah out on a proper date. Sarah had agreed, since Buck had smoothed the way be explaining that his friend really was a good man when he was sober, but decreed that Chris must abide by a no liquor rule when in her presence. It was a rule he'd upheld from that day forth. Even when their baby boy was born, Chris refused to wet Adam's head with anything stronger than beer. As happy as he was, he had no need for liquor.

Until three years ago.

Buck vividly remembered convincing his friend to stay an extra night in London, where they were attending an international Auror's conference. Drinking and swapping stories with other law enforcers from other countries until the wee hours, they'd finally staggered back to their hotel where Chris had called his wife to tell her he loved her. Sarah had scolded him for waking Adam and then laughed her full-throated, sexy as hell laugh before telling him that she loved him too and that she had a secret to tell him on his return. It had been all Buck could do to keep Larabee where he was and not go waking up the leader of their party to get to their portkey.

When they'd arrived back in Denver, it had been to the grim faces of their fellow Aurors, who had been tasked with the sad duty of informing Chris that his wife and child had been cruciated and killed by unknown dark wizards/witches in his absence. In shock, both of them had found themselves in the Denver morgue looking down at the faces of Sarah and Adam. A tear fell from Buck's eye as he once again remembered the clinical way the morgue assistant had told Chris that his wife had been pregnant at the time of her death. That news had driven Chris to his knees after he'd howled in fury and pain, smashing his fist into the door of one of the drawers on the morgue refrigerator. Refusing to allow any tears to fall, Chris had pushed Buck away with enough force to send the taller man flying and then run from the room, waiting in silence for Buck outside.

Aside from insisting that they be buried in the same casket, as Sarah would want to hold Adam to her for all eternity, Chris made no arrangements and didn't speak another word. Buck was the one to make the funeral arrangements, contacting family and friends with the news and trying to keep his friend from shattering, all whilst dealing with his own raw grief.

Hank Connolly, Sarah's estranged muggle father, showed up drunk and berated Chris for marrying his child and blaming both Chris and magic for killing his only child. Chris had just blinked, taken his wand out, snapped it over his knee, dropped the now useless wand to the ground and turned his back on his father-in-law, Buck, his job and the entire magical community. That night Chris disappeared and it took Buck three weeks to find him again, admitted to a muggle hospital with alcohol poisoning and a stab injury incurred in a bar fight. It was then that Buck realized that the distraught man had repressed his magic to the point of being considered a muggle. The blond had been thin as a rail, bruised and hollow-eyed. Buck shuddered as he remembered the deadness in his old friend's eyes, when he'd tried to take the man home. Refusing to go to the ranch he'd shared with his family, Chris had allowed Buck to take him back to his place and curled up on the big man's couch. The next morning, he was gone again and it took Buck a month to find him. The pattern was set and they'd been working it ever since in repetition ever since.

For the past three years, Buck had spent a large amount of time trailing his buddy around the seediest bars in towns he'd never even heard of before. In a way he was thankful that Chris had lost his magic, because he'd have never survived the man's wrath if he could still use the more deadly curses. As it was, Buck had suffered many an injury from his grieving friend's fists in the course of his faithful duty to prevent Chris from joining Sarah and Adam beyond the veil. A chance meeting with Orin Travis, who was now head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement in Colorado, had resulted in a job offer for both of them. Now he just had to convince Chris to dry out and join up with Orin's new cause. More accurately, he had to get the angry, grief-stricken man to Orin so that the older, more experienced wizard could convince his friend. Sighing heavily, Buck turned his gaze back to the road.

TBC⨪


	3. Chapter 3

Orin Travis sat at his very impressive desk in his spacious office and sighed from the depth of his soul, his moist eyes fixed on the photograph of a happy smiling family that sat on his desk. His only son, Steven, had recently travelled to England with his wife, Mary, leaving their son Billy at home with his grandparents, whilst they investigated rumours that the Dark Lord and his followers were making themselves known again. Mary had reappeared in their kitchen four days ago in a state of shock, clutching the dead body of her husband in her arms along with the toy car that Orin had charmed into a portkey for them. It transpired that they'd stumbled onto a den of Death Eaters during their investigation and Steven had died protecting Mary from an unforgiveable curse sent at her. It was true. Lord Voldemort was on the rise again.

With the blessing of his wife, Evie, he'd left his remaining family in the care of their family healer and old friend, Morticiah Dimbleby. Orin had launched into action, providing his superiors with the news and gaining approval to form a special group of law enforcers called the A.T.F., or Auror Tactical Force. Trawling through all the records of their current and recently retired Aurors, he'd managed to form six balanced groups so far, but he was stuck on the seventh and final team.

A chance meeting with Buck Wilmington, a Hit Wizard he'd met at an Auror's conference in New Mexico, led him to the news that Chris Larabee was still alive and currently living in a little town outside Denver, called Four Corners. The town was unplottable to Muggles as well as heavily charmed to repel any Muggles that blundered too close and disillusioned daily just to be sure. The inhabitants were witches and wizards who were unhappy living in the non-magical world, or who just needed respite from the relentless tedium of non-magical living. Having heard the rumours of Larabee's rejection of magic, conscious or otherwise, Orin had been surprised to learn that the man was still living there. Buck had told him that Chris couldn't bear to leave the graves of his wife and child for long, so no matter how far he ran trying to escape the grief, he always returned to the ranch outside Four Corners.

Looking up blearily at the building his friend was driving into, Chris suddenly snapped to attention and snarled, "What the hell are we doing here, Bucklin?"

Turning off the engine after he'd parked and taking a deep breath to brace himself, Buck answered in a soft voice, "Chris, I know ya ain't had an easy time of it these last few years, but ya ain't the only one to have lost folk you love. I loved Sarah and Adam too. I lost my Ma. Others have lost kin they love too."

Rage started to fill Chris at these words and he turned to Buck with his mouth set in ugly lines.

"Silencio," murmured Buck, having removed his wand from the special pocket on the inside of his jacket. Seeing that Chris was about to launch a physical attack on him, he sadly muttered, "Petrificus Totalus."

Frozen and mute, Chris howled on the inside as he raged against the magic his old friend had betrayed him with and glared at Buck as the only means of communication left to him.

Slowly replacing his wand, Buck looked at Chris with his cobalt eyes brimming with unshed tears. Seeing the utter fury in the ice cold glare being levelled at him, he got out of the car and dragged his way over to the passenger side, opening the door and swiveling his friend around carefully, so Chris now faced out. Unseen by either wizard, Vin crept closer to watch this drama unfold, his tiny face a picture of grim determination. He wouldn't let the moustached wizard take advantage of the other man, but he needed to learn more before he interfered.

"Now then, old dog, you're just gonna listen to me for once. We've been friends a whole lot of years and I've never once lifted a wand to you, even though you've given me more 'n enough cause to at times. But this is important and not just to you and me. The whole world's at risk this time, Larabee, and we've got a chance to do something about it. He Who Must Not Be Named is coming back."

That was enough to cut through Chris' rage and stun his mind into reason. The Dark Lord was coming back? He thought that after it was reported that Voldemort had been destroyed trying to kill the Potter's baby boy over a decade ago in Godric's Hollow over in England, that the world would be free of the insane megalomaniac. The Death Eaters had scattered and the reign of terror seemed to dissipate, although there were still incidents reported sporadically that allegedly involved the Dark Lord's followers, including the death of his own family by the killing curse. Anxiously, he looked at Buck, wishing his friend could read his mind so that he'd remove the charms from him and allow him to ask the questions whirling through his mind. Unfortunately, legilimency had never been one of Buck's strengths.

Stunned, Vin froze in the back of the truck. The Dark Lord was coming back! Death Eaters had killed his father when he just a button and injured his mother to the point that she never fully recovered, dying when he was just five. Dark magic users had destroyed any chance he'd had of a happy childhood and he hated them passionately for that, if nothing else. He and his Ma had lived happily enough, even though she couldn't do much for him and he had to look after her a lot as he grew, since she couldn't bend over very well, she suffered from debilitating migraines and one of her arms was paralysed. After his Ma's death, he'd been sent to live with her grandfather, a pureblood of an ancient line who'd disowned his own child for marrying a muggle born witch. When that union had only produced the one child and the child was a girl, Ezekiel had disowned his granddaughter without even meeting her. Since his great grandchild was a male heir, the old man had taken Vin in when approached by the Muggle authorities and immediately set out to raise him in his own image.

An unforeseen flaw in his plan had been the fact that Vin just didn't have it in him to be the sort of elitist, dark wizard that his grandfather wanted him to be. Finally, Vin had fled from the beatings, abuse, constant disapproval and criticism. Found shivering and crying in a hollowed out tree by a medicine man called Kojay, he was taken in by the kindly man and went to live with him on a nearby reservation. He'd lived with the People, absorbing their knowledge and culture, until the Ministry caught up with him and sent him to a school for magical children when he was eleven. The parting had been further trauma in an already painful life, but at least he knew that he was welcome to return to his family on the rez on holidays.

Painfully shy, Vin hadn't proven to be a popular student with teachers or students and had left school with the bare minimum of passes, in Care of Magical Creatures, Herbology, Transfiguration and Defence Against The Dark Arts, as soon as possible. He'd tried to join the Ministry as an Auror but had been rejected due to his lack of higher school results. After living on the streets for a number of months, he'd started hunting bounty after he'd been taken under the wing of an older hunter and he'd proven to be very successful. At least until he'd started tracking Eli Joe. Shaking his head to try and dispel the painful memories, Vin focused on what Buck was saying.

"I ran into Orin Travis, y'all remember me telling you about meeting him at that conference in Albuquerque, and he was telling me that Death Eaters had… well, they murdered his son in London recently. Steven and his wife were there writing a story about the Dark Lord and how he might be coming back, when they ran into trouble. Travis is putting together a special unit of Aurors, mostly Hit Wizards with a few other specialties here and there, to try and head off anything in America. He wants you and me on a team, Chris. That's why we're here. And damn it, you're going to dry out your drunken ass and we're going to do it. Now, I'm going to release you and you're not going to hit me, got it. 'Cos I got to say, pard, I'm pretty damned sick of being your punching bag," said Buck sternly, reaching for his wand again.

Released from the silencing and body binding charms, Chris collapsed onto Buck's broad chest, grateful for the steadying hands on his upper arms. Resting his head on Buck's shoulder for a moment, he concentrated on getting some control of his whirling thoughts and emotions. Finally, he looked up at Buck and choked, "Why me, Buck? I'm not an Auror anymore. Hell, I snapped my wand. There's no more magic in me."

"Wands can be replaced, old dog, and as for the magic, well shoot, the magic is still in ya, strong as it ever was. You just have to want it to be. But for now, what say we just go in and hear what Travis has to say. You don't have to join up if ya don't want to, but you owe it … well, you should just hear him out," soothed Buck, rubbing his hands up and down Chris' arms, worried that his friend looked like he was going into shock and wishing he'd thought to bring some chocolate.

Taking a huge breath, Chris stood up and fixed his face into its usual grim lines and blew out a gusty sigh and nodded to indicate that he was as ready as he'd ever be.

"Well, all right," cheered Buck, slapping Chris on the shoulder and closing his truck door. "Let's get this show on the road."

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

Stunned, Vin cowered into the blanket when Buck glanced over the truck bed as he walked away. The young tracker desperately wanted to know more about what the men had been talking about, but there was no way for him to sneak into the Ministry of Magical Law Enforcement. With a bounty on his head, he'd be a fool to go in there in any of his forms. There were so many wards and spells on the building, including ones that reversed any transfiguration magic, that he'd be discovered instantly. Maybe if he stayed where he was and followed this Buck and Chris when they came out, then he'd hear them talking about it some more. Not being an Auror himself, he couldn't be on the team with them, but maybe he could offer his services some other way, in an unofficial capacity. Shivering a little with cold, damp, bad memories and apprehension, he settled in for the long wait.

Dorothy, Orin Travis' temporary personal assistant, stopped filing her nails and perked up when the two, tall handsome men walked up to her desk. She pushed her chest out and preened when the dark haired one winked at her, chirping, "Do you have an appointment with Arbitrator Travis?"

Chris smirked as yet another woman fell to his old friend's charm; little knowing that it was the Veela in Buck's DNA making her heart flutter. Not that Buck was devoid of his own charm and good looks, but the natural seductiveness leant to him by his maternal grandmother helped smooth out his less than subtle ways. Buck loved all women and couldn't restrict himself to just the one, but he never left any woman unhappy or broken-hearted. They just seemed to know that the big lug wasn't the marrying kind and always parted on good terms, albeit with a yearning sigh.

"Why yes we do, darlin', can we go on in," purred Buck, eyeing up the buxom red-headed witch before him. Maybe once the meeting was over, he'd have some time to get her number.

"Miss Teesdale, do you have… Oh, I see Aurors Wilmington and Larabee have arrived. Please come in, gentlemen," growled Orin, frowning disapprovingly at the temp that administrative services had sent up to replace his usual personal assistant, a sensible older witch called Helen. A memo would be getting sent to request that the flirtatious, shallow girl wasn't sent up to him again.

Once everyone had settled and Orin had supplied everyone with a cup of good strong coffee, having caught the smell of whiskey that seemed to emanate from Chris, the older man started in without any small talk. "Auror Larabee, I expect that Auror Wilmington has already given you the basics, but what I've invited you here for is to ask you to head A.T.F. team seven."

Interrupting, Chris clutched the hot cup in his hands and growled, "A.T.F.? Aren't they Muggle law enforcement?"

Realising Wilmington hadn't been all that comprehensive in his explanation, Orin said ruefully, "Yes, they are, but A.T.F. stands for Auror Tactical Force in this instance, which is a new division that has been authorised as a defensive force against the oncoming storm of terrorism that will arise with the re-emergence of He Who Must Not Be Named and his followers. Team seven are the final team to be formed and as the head of it, I will allow you a certain amount of leeway when it comes to selecting your team members, Auror Larabee. Obviously, you'll be getting Auror Wilmington as your second in command, since you've worked together seamlessly in the past. I would like to recommend these two gentlemen for your consideration also."

Chris took the folders offered to him and scanned through the contents before handing them to Buck for his perusal.

The Judge continued, "Auror Sanchez has been retired for a couple of years as he wished to explore some other areas of interest to him, as well as teaching some classes at various institutions, both magical and non-magical. He's an excellent profiler and his knowledge of Defence Against the Dark Arts is vast. I believe that he will be an outstanding asset to your team, since he has experience in fighting the Dark Lord's followers from when they were last active. The other is Auror Jackson, who's a fully trained healer with excellent references, as well as an Auror. He has combat experience as a medic in the Muggle military too, which should prove useful. Given the nature of the fight you may be entering, I believe it's wise to have a medic with each team. Also, Jackson and Sanchez know each other already, so they'll work well together from the outset."

Silence encompassed the office as Chris and Buck absorbed the information given to them so far.

Clearing his throat, Orin went on gruffly. "My son gave his life in the acquisition of the latest intelligence on the battle against those who follow the Dark Lord, so I don't have to tell you that I am very serious about the success of this endeavour. I am only recruiting the best of the best."

"Which leads me to the question: Why you want me then? It's no secret that I've lost my magic, so why me?"

Turning grave eyes on the younger man, Orin said solemnly, "Because those who have lost the most fight the hardest. You were the absolute best Auror we had before your family were taken from you. The leadership and strategic skills you had then are still within you. Everyone I've spoken to has urged me to get you back, magic or no."

Studying the effect his words were having on the stoic blond, Orin declared, "And because I believe that once you commit to something you finish it. If you decide to take up this post, then I am firmly convinced that your magic will come back."

Nodding thoughtfully, Buck silently agreed with Travis. He'd long held the belief that the minute someone Chris cared about was in danger; his protective instincts would kick in and release the dammed magic like a flood. Merlin help the focus of his old friend's anger that day.

Feeling as though he was about to explode with all the churning emotions, Chris remained quiet for a few minutes, before asking, "Can I take some time to think it over?"

Knowing that it wasn't right to make the clearly inebriated man make a life changing decision, Orin agreed to give him the weekend but no more.

As Chris left the building with his faithful, loyal friend by his side, he felt the vague flutterings of new life enter his dead world.

TBC


	5. Chapter 5

After leaving Travis with promises of returning early on Monday morning, Buck drove Chris back to Four Corners. Instead of taking him back to the ranch, he drove to the tavern affectionately called the Saloon. If he had any hope of sobering Chris up, he had to get some food into him and there would be none at Chris' ranch. Also, he knew that Chris couldn't turn down the delicious Mexican dishes of the Saloon's proprietress, Inez Rocillos.

Unaware of the attention of a youth watching from the bookshop opposite, Vin cautiously uncurled from his hiding place and transformed back into his prairie falcon form, before flying from the truck bed and up onto the roof of the tavern. Once there, he returned to his human form and made his way down the fire escape to the alley beside the building. The smells of the food inside made his stomach ache and cramp, reminding him how long it had been since he'd last eaten, but he had no money to pay for a meal. Usually when he was out of money, he'd head out and hunt for some game, but he hadn't been willing to give up the trail on Eli Joe. Now he had more important things to occupy him, so he sidled into the saloon and looked around for a dark corner. He needed to change back to a mink and get closer to the table where Buck was currently trying to convince Chris not to order alcohol with his meal.

"Tanner! You're under arrest in the name of the Ministry of Magical Law Enforcement!"

"Hecate's hag hairs!" Vin cursed and whirled around to see Auror Yates moving towards him with a look of smug victory on his face. "How'd ya find me, Yates."

"Anonymous tip from a concerned citizen, Tanner," crowed Yates triumphantly, wand pointed unwaveringly at Tanner's chest.

Vin looked despairingly around the bar in search of escape. His eyes met the hard hazel-green eyes of Chris Larabee and he felt a jolt of familiarity. Tearing his gaze away, he kept looking for a distraction.

Chris's attention had been torn from his half-hearted fight with Buck by the loud voice of Auror Yates. The two had met once before when Chris had still been an active Auror and it had been a case of instant mutual loathing. Wondering what the man was doing in Colorado, when the last he'd heard was that the other auror was stationed in Texas, Chris looked at the scruffy, skinny, long-haired recipient of Yates attention. A thrill of recognition went down his spine when he locked onto startled sky blue eyes, yet he knew that he'd never met or seen the owner of those eyes. Standing up, he started to walk over, followed as ever by Buck.

A tray of beer glasses crashed to the ground beside the bar, instantly drawing the eyes of everyone in the saloon. A stream of Spanish epithets flowed from the pretty Mexican bar owner as she viewed the wreckage from the other end of the bar. There was no-one in the vicinity of the tray, so how had they fallen. Pulling out her wand, she angrily pointed it at the mess and muttered, "Reparo!"

Simultaneously with the crash, a warm, silky voice whispered urgently in Vin's mind, 'Change! Run!'

Needing no further urging, Vin transformed into a mink and scampered out under the swinging doors, meaning to change into a prairie falcon once outside.

Yates, Chris and Buck, along with a couple of others with a morbid fascination with the illicit rushed through the doors. All were in time to see a magnificent snowy owl swoop down and silently snatch the mink from the sidewalk before flying out of sight around the corner of the building.

Ezra had no idea what had possessed him to help the scrawny younger man who was currently gripped in his talons in the form of a mink. In a bid to get away from the cretins at the FBI, he'd decided to return to his second home for the weekend and seek solace from Leonard and distraction with Achacius. On the way to his luxurious cabin in the hills outside Four Corners, he'd stopped for a rest on the roof of the Saloon. He found flying to be an excellent source of exercise and stress relief, hence his current form of a snowy owl. Using the floo network, apparation, brooms, portkeys, or even conventional Muggle transportation was all available to him, but flight on his own was truly exhilarating.

Sitting there debating whether or not to go in for some of Inez's divine tamales, Ezra had seen Yates then Wilmington and Larabee enter. Gathering himself for flight, he'd decided to head home to avoid encountering either Yates, whom he'd had the misfortune to interact with on a professional basis, or Larabee, whom he'd had a couple of altercations with in the bar he currently sat on. He and Larabee were very distantly related, as were most pureblood families, but there was no love lost between them. But then he'd caught the movement in the tray of the Muggle monstrosity that Wilmington used as transportation and all thought of leaving was gone. Intrigued, he'd watched a ruffled mink emerge and change into a falcon which winged its way up to a perch on the roof not far from his own perch. Since there were a couple of mail owls resting there too, the falcon hadn't paid him any attention.

Although he was in Muggle law enforcement, Ezra also kept abreast of the criminals of the magical world, since they often popped up on Muggle wanted lists too. When the falcon had changed into a slender young man with long light brown hair and several days' stubble, Ezra had instantly recognised him as Vin Tanner. Cursed - or blessed, depending on the day - with an eidetic memory, the FBI agent instantly had the file running through his mind and almost changed into human form to arrest him. Muggle or magic user, murder was murder. The only thing stopping him was the nagging doubt of the guilt of the suspect, which had been in his mind ever since he'd read the file. There were just too many gaps and inconsistencies in the evidence, not to mention glaring faults in the deductive reasoning of the aurors, for him to believe that Tanner was guilty.

Instead, Ezra had tapped into the Texan's mind. An accomplished Legilimens, he only used his skills on those whom he considered suspects. After all, why waste time chasing after an innocent person whilst the criminal got further and further away. Seeing what had happened, from Vin's viewpoint convinced the Southerner that his instincts had been correct. Just as he was preparing to withdraw, he saw and heard Yates approach. Unable to stand by and allow that thug to apprehend an innocent man, Ezra looked around the room with Vin's blue eyes and spied the tray of glasses resting near the edge of the bar. Using a hover charm, he caused the tray to crash and ordered the younger man to transform and run. Then he flew to the rescue without further thought.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

Vin knew he should be terrified, but he had heard that soothing drawl in his head telling him to relax and trust, so decided to do what he was told. After all, the alternative would mean losing a lot of skin and fur to the wickedly sharp talons currently holding him aloft. A chuckle sounded in his mind at that thought causing him to twitch a little at the intrusion. Just like that, he felt a soft brush of apology before he knew that he was once again alone in his mind and he relaxed a little. Watching the countryside as they passed over it, he memorised their path in order to know his way back and noted that they were heading into the hills. He felt a prickling all over his body at one point and knew that they'd passed through some sort of magical barrier. After another half hour's flight, a large two story dwelling with wrap around porches, rocking chairs and a swing seat came into view as they descended.

The relief of being home and safe engulfed Ezra as it always had since he'd found this property. His owl, Horatia, would be sleeping in her custom made mews at the back of the house. Orlando, the hippogriff who had claimed him as a friend, would be hunting through the surrounding forests or lazing in his snug barn with Ezra's donkey, Dorothy. Leonard would be snoozing on his down-filled cushion patiently waiting for his supper, and Achacius would be either stalking the long-suffering Horatia or hunting through the house for any vermin stupid enough to enter the dwelling.

The house-elf Ezra had inherited from Great-Aunt Hephzibah would be busily cooking and baking since Neldy always knew when he would be home. Not a supporter of the enslavement of any creature, Ezra had immediately freed Neldy by giving her a full wardrobe of smart, elf-sized clothes. But even though the old house-elf wore her clothes with pride, she refused to leave his service. Knowing that Neldy had nowhere else to go and drew comfort and happiness from providing faithful service to his family, Ezra hired her and gave her a Knut a week in payment along with her own furnished quarters in the attic. In return she was devoted to her Master Ezra and kept his house immaculately clean, cared for his pets when he wasn't home and pampered him like a king when he was home.

Vin experienced a stomach clenching surge of panic as he felt the talons release him when they were still about ten feet in the air, but before he could transform he was caught by soft human hands.

Letting go of Vin, Ezra transformed mid-air and landed lightly on his feet as he caught the twisting, falling mink. Holding the animal in such a way that he could look into its blue eyes, he smirked at the way the tiny heart hammered against his thumb and asked, "Would you care to join me for dinner, Mr Tanner?"

After he'd been gently set down, Vin returned to his human form and stared at the jade-eyed, auburn haired wizard in front of him. Slightly shorter than him, the other wizard was the picture of perfection from his neatly groomed hair to the tip of his shined shoes. Rubbing a hand over the back of his neck, Vin couldn't help reflecting on his own threadbare, scruffy appearance. Never one to be bothered with smart clothes, preferring durable jeans, t-shirts and a warm over-shirt, he was looking particularly ragged at the moment having been on the run and without funds. Just as Vin was about to suggest he just move on, his stomach growled loudly and he looked down at it in dismay and embarrassment.

Ezra had seen the look of shame and dismay cross his new friend's face and easily guessed at the reasoning behind it when the younger man's slender fingers plucked fretfully at the ragged hem of his holey t-shirt. Unlike his family, Ezra wasn't one to judge a person solely on their appearance therefore he was willing to look at a person's actions also. So far, what he'd seen of Vin Tanner had impressed him greatly and he recognised a fellow survivor. Chuckling when Vin's stomach overruled his head, Ezra held his hand out and said, "Ezra P Standish, at your service. This is my home and you are welcome to stay as long as you like. I assure you that you will be safe from detection here and may rest soundly. Now shall we make haste and enter, as Neldy will have dinner nearly ready for us and she does hate for food to go to waste."

Shyly taking the offered hand and shaking it, Vin nodded and replied, "Vin Tanner, but y'all seem ta know that. Don't know why ya bein' so good ta me, but I ain't in a position ter be refusin' an offer like that."

Clapping the younger man on the shoulder, Ezra started into the house saying, "Excellent. Now, come on in and I'll give you the fifty cent tour."

Vin was overwhelmed at the rustic beauty of his new friend's home. A huge, beautifully furnished great room dominated the ground floor, with a large, warm kitchen complete with a cheerful, plump and clothed house-elf, a dining room and a study with more books lining the walls than Vin had seen outside a bookstore or public library. He'd noted the slightly grizzled kneazel, reclining on an overstuffed cushion on a comfortable looking sofa in the great room, assessing the new wizard through slitted eyes. Pleased to see that whilst Ezra had a house-elf, she was freed and obviously treated well. Vin had blushed fiercely when the tiny creature had fussed over him and told him he needed a bath, warmer clothes and fattening up. As they were passing the staircase, the overwhelmed wizard had released a manly squeal of perfectly justified surprise when a large furry beast had pounced on him.

"Achacius! Bad boy! Is that any way to treat a guest in our home? Get down at once," scolded Ezra, standing with his hands on his hips and a smile tweaking at his lips. The rebuke would have had more effect if his voice hadn't held a note of amusement and warm affection.

Achacius comfortably curled around the neck of the new human, batting at a curl of hair with one massive paw and blinked at his master lazily. Pleased by the woodsy smell of this new person, the hefty creature had no intention of moving regardless of his owner's chiding.

"'S'alright, Ez. Reckon I can stand the weight," declared Vin, staring at the cat wrapped around his neck in their reflection in a hallway mirror. It was a huge animal and he guessed the kneazel in the great room was involved in his creation. Reaching up a tentative hand, he grasped the swishing tail before it could smack him in the mouth again and held onto it, running it through both his hands. "The kneazel in the other room his Daddy?"

Smiling, Ezra nodded and replied, "Yes. Leonard is Achacius' paternal progenitor. His mother was a rather large and adventurous Norwegian Forest cat called Mogster who ended up in the shop of a friend of mine, but she's since left us to cross the veil, sadly. Achacius was their only kitten and he's an unholy terror, but I'm very fond of him."

With the catzle vibrating with ear splitting purrs, they continued on the tour and Vin saw the downstairs washroom and the laundry room. Going upstairs, he followed Ezra along the hallway, peering into three lavishly furnished bedrooms which each had its own ensuite bathroom, before standing in the middle of the master bedroom with his jaw hanging in amazement. He'd never seen such opulence and he realised belatedly that his new friend was incredibly wealthy to be able to afford such surroundings. Feeling his own poverty even more keenly, he made sure not to touch anything or get close enough to knock anything over. Knowing he wouldn't feel comfortable in any of the rooms, he wondered if Ezra would be offended if he asked to sleep on the porch in a sleeping bag.

His guest's discomfort was rolling off him in waves and Ezra knew the younger man wouldn't want to stay in any of the bedrooms on this floor. Chuckling, he made a beckoning motion with a finger and led the Texan upstairs to the attic rooms. He pointed to a closed door that was only waist high, saying, "That one leads to Neldy's quarters. Just knock twice on the wall above the door if you need anything and she'll be happy to help. Most of these other rooms are storage, but I thought you might like to sleep in this last room."

Vin couldn't help the gasp of surprise as he entered the room after Ezra. The walls had several large windows that faced out over the front and side of the property. The front yard sloped down in a long gradient to where a medium sized lake sparkled in the late afternoon sunlight. It looked like the perfect place to fish and swim in the summer. He could see a jetty and a boathouse, so assumed that there was a boat to use.

Hurrying across the polished floorboards, Vin ran his hands over the solidly made, Quaker style furniture, admiring the hand-made patchwork quilt on the double bed. There was a wardrobe and a set of drawers with a mirror mounted on the wall behind it. The bed looked cosy, comfortable and inviting, with a bedside chest on either side that each supported a lamp. A door led off into a spacious ensuite that had a large, footed bath long enough for him to completely submerge in; perfect for soaking out aches. There was also the usual shower stall, toilet and hand basin found in every bathroom. Thick fluffy towels waited on a warmer. The back wall held French doors that opened out onto a small balcony, complete with a hammock, table and two chairs.

Hardly daring to believe, Vin turned to his host and rasped, "I can really stay here?"

"For as long as you like, Mr Tanner. The wardrobe and drawers have a variety of clothing that should be roughly your size, so you will be assured of something to wear. Achacius seems to have developed somewhat of an attachment to you, so don't be alarmed if he decides to join you in your slumbers at some point. The sneaky devil manages to get wherever he wants to be, regardless of obstacles such as locked doors or human disapproval. Also, I have a spectacled owl by the name of Horatia who may visit you if you leave your windows open. She's a lovely bird and very reliable for mail delivery, but has an insatiable sense of curiousity for anything new in her domain. Oh speaking of mail, there's usually a tin of owl treats in most rooms for incoming mail, so just rummage in the drawers until you find them. Oh, and the other thing about this room is..."

Looking up at the roof obediently when Ezra gestured upward, Vin gaped as it disappeared to be replaced by a clear, blue sky.

Looking pleased, Ezra explained, "I had a cousin who sometimes visited and he was a touch claustrophobic so I created this room with him in mind. Enchanting the ceiling as a reflection of the sky was his idea. We attended Hogwarts for a year or so together and the great hall there has a ceiling with the same effect. It can be disconcerting when it rains, as you expect to get wet but it's just an illusion and will revert to a normal ceiling if the rain persists for more than a few moments. The stars out here are really spectacular though, so you should enjoy the effect."

Shutting his mouth, Vin turned away from Ezra's knowing eyes and swallowed the lump in his throat with difficulty. Emotions welled up in him and he began to shake slightly with the force of repressing them. This place. This room. This man. It all felt like a home and Vin hadn't had a home for so long that to suddenly happen upon it almost physically hurt him.

"Achacius, go and bother Leonard now," ordered Ezra softly, carefully removed his pet from Vin's neck and dropping the catzle to the floor. Respecting Vin's privacy, Ezra merely placed a supportive hand on the younger man's trembling, bony shoulder and said, "I'll leave you to freshen up and rest. Supper will be ready in an hour. Come down when you're ready."

Nodding as the warm hand slid off his shoulder to give a quick, comforting rub over his back, Vin listened as Ezra's footsteps receded from the room and the door closed. A sob escaped him as he sank to the floor and drew his knees to his chest, wrapping his arms around them. Looking around the room with tear drenched eyes, he sucked in a breath and sighed, "Thank ya for guidin' me here, Ma."

Placing his head on his knees, Vin wept with the relief of finally finding a sanctuary.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

Yates fumed as he recalled again how Tanner had been snatched from him. Literally. The smirks on Larabee and Wilmington's faces had just made the burn worse. After searching the Animagi register, he hadn't found any that transformed into snowy owls. Not in Colorado anyway. There was nothing on Tanner's file to say he could transform into a mink, either. According to the register, he took the form of a coyote. Snarling as he paced his hotel room, Yates cursed his cousin, Eli Joe, for getting him involved in this mess.

Two days later, Buck accompanied a sober and sombre Chris back to Orin Travis's office.

"So, Auror Larabee, have you made your decision?"

"I'm in, Arbitrator Travis, if you still want me. Buck's in too but I'd like to meet Jackson and Sanchez before agreeing to them. I've been in a class of Sanchez's before and I was impressed with him, but I'd like to have a conversation with him before committing. How many people are there supposed to be in the team?"

Pleased to have recruited the best, even if he was handicapped at the moment, Orin replied, "Most of the teams have five to eight people, depending on the requirements. At least two Hit Wizards, with a medic, chameleon and profiler. If you agree to Aurors Jackson and Sanchez, then you'll only need to find yourself a chameleon to have a complete team, but if you need more in other specialties, let me know."

Green eyes thoughtful, Chris slowly shook his head and demurred, "Buck makes one Hit Wizard, but I'll need a long ranger as well since Buck's better at close range. I'm leader and strategist but unless I get my magic back, I'm worse than useless defensively. Jackson is medic and potions, as well as being good in a fight judging by his service record. Sanchez had a solid record from the last time the Dark Lord was active, as well as being an experienced and scarily accurate profiler and he's unsurpassed in the Defence against the Dark Arts field in America. Second only to Dumbledore and Moody in the world, I suspect."

A sudden ruckus sounded outside the room followed by a woman's outraged voice calling, "What are you doing there, young man? Wait! You can't go in there!"

Orin looked up, whilst Buck and Chris turned in their chairs to see who was barging into the office, all three moving hands to where they'd stored their wands. Or where Chris had stored his wand when he'd had one, he thought ruefully. A young man in a crumpled black wizards' hat, who looked barely old enough to shave, was hurriedly shutting the door in the outraged face of Orin's flustered personal assistant, as Helen tried to grab him and drag him back out.

Turning and leaning against the door to keep it from opening, the boy announced, "Arbitrator Travis, my name is John Daniel Dunne, except I like to be called JD, and I'm here to apply for a position on your new A.T.F. teams. I came out of school with Exceeds Expectations in all of my N.E.W.T.S. and I sat every subject. I was a seeker on my quidditch team and I never lost a snitch, except that one time but that wasn't my fault, it was Hugo's fault for getting in the way. I've been a junior Auror in Boston for a year and I've nearly completed all of the written prerequisites for promotion to full Auror, I just need to someone to agree to mentor me for a year. When I heard that you were forming a new division to fight He Who Must Not Be Named, I knew I had to be part of the fight. I know you aren't taking junior Aurors, but if you'll just give me a chance to prove myself, I can guarantee you won't regret it, sir. I can take the last exam and my final dissertation is ready to go. I heard that you had Auror Larabee back from retirement and I'd really like to be on his team 'cos if I'm learning then I want to learn from the best, you know, so I was kind of hoping you could make him my mentor and..."

During this breathless monologue, Buck's moustache was twitching madly with utter delight at the young chatterbox in his stupid hat. His glee increased tenfold when he glanced over at his friend to see that Chris' eyebrows had risen to his hairline, whilst his mouth was slightly open in shock. Oh, he had to get the old dog to agree to take this boy on the team. He just had to - for the entertainment value alone. That vein in Chris' forehead was throbbing like a champion and he'd only been exposed to the boy for a few minutes.

Chris snapped his mouth shut and lowered his eyebrows into a frown of disapproval. No way in hell was he letting this kid onto any team of his, when they were going in to fight some of the most lethal wizards in the magical world. He'd be killed within ten minutes and Chris refused to have that on his conscience. There was quite enough blood on his hands already, without adding more when it was easily prevented.

Orin frowned at the presumptuous pup in front of him. Wondering how the boy had even heard of the new division, he also knew that he was much too young and inexperienced to throw to the Dark wizards. Seeing that the youngster wasn't going to stop for breath anytime soon, Orin interrupted sternly, "Junior Auror Dunne! Stop and breathe!"

Snapping his mouth shut, JD gazed at the Arbitrator hopefully.

Damned if those large, luminous eyes weren't eating at his resolve, thought Orin. They reminded him of the puppy dog eyes that his grandson would employe when the lad wanted an extra scoop of icecream, or an extra half hour of broom riding. Deciding that one of the perks of being the boss was delegation, Orin threw the boy in Larabee's lap, saying, "Well, Auror Larabee, what do you think?"

With a nervous meep, JD tried to merge with the door when he was pinned by the most intense glare he'd ever witnessed. And most of his Professors and instructors had levelled some very impressive glares at him at one time or another.

Unimpressed with what he saw, Chris growled dismissively, "Get out of here, kid, you're too young to die."

A look of pure stubbornness came over JD's face as he thrust his chin out pugnaciously and replied firmly, "I'm twenty-two years old, Auror Larabee, and that old enough to fight for my country. Men younger than me have been taking up the fight, so I reckon I can too. I can fight, I can fly and I can cast most defence spells with high accuracy. All I need is a chance to prove to you that I can do it."

"Come on, Chris. Give the kid a chance," suggested Buck, winking at the kid in encouragement. Took guts to stand up to Larabee and this kid wasn't backing down.

"No, Buck and that's final. I won't be the one writing to this kid's mother, telling her that her boy died before he hit twenty-three just 'cos he wanted to play at being a hero."

Tears filled his eyes, but JD blinked them back determinedly and spat, "My Ma died last year and I ain't got no-one else, so you won't have that worry."

A twinge of guilt hit Chris, which wasn't helped by the reproachful look on Buck's expressive face. Summoning up his resolve, he growled back, "I'm sorry to hear that, but it doesn't change my mind. Come back in a couple of years if I'm still alive and I'll reconsider."

Seeing that the boy was opening his mouth to argue further and sensing that the confrontation could continue indefinitely if someone didn't step in, Orin decided to put a halt to it. "Son, Auror Larabee has spoken. Now I suggest you go back to Boston and finish your training in the conventional manner. Come back and apply again once you're a full Auror. Revolvo."

With a flick of his wand, Orin made the door that JD was still leaning against spin so that the Bostonian found himself on the other side of it, looking into the extremely angry features of Arbitrator Travis' personal assistant. He gulped and hiked his shoulders up around his ears to protect them from the tirade Helen launched into regarding his rudeness and impropriety.

Sighing and feeling a certain loss at the kid's exclusion from the new team, Buck realised that there was no point in arguing the case further. Once Chris' mind was made up, it would take dynamite and a bulldozer to shift it. Acknowledging that he'd lost the fight, but may yet win the battle, Buck's natural bouyancy returned and he bade the Arbitrator farewell. After Chris had also said his goodbye, Buck grabbed hold of the blond's arm firmly and with a pop he disapparated them from Travis' office and apparated into their new office. Releasing his friend immediately to lesson the man's embarrassment, he nodded to the tall black wizard and the solidly built grey-haired wizard who looked up from the desk they'd been leaning against.

Taking a large breath and trying to release the gut churning feeling that came with side-along apparating, Chris turned to the two men already in the office. Holding out his hand, he firmly shook those offered in return and introduced himself and Buck.

'So it's true,' thought Josiah, upon witnessing the obvious side-along apparating, 'The legendary Chris Larabee is without his magic. I've never heard of that happening before. Fascinating.'

Nathan nodded back agreeably and introduced himself and Josiah, all the while wondering if there was anything medically wrong with Larabee that was inhibiting his magic. It just seemed wrong to let it go uninvestigated and untreated, given how powerful a wizard Larabee had been. 'Couldn't be good for a person to have all that magic bottled up,' thought the medic as he eyed the blond wizard curiously. 'Man could explode and take us all out with a burst of unintentional magic, especially given his training.'

Knowing that it would be a major factor and feeling the assessing gazes of the two wizards, Chris asked, "As you've just seen, I've lost my magic, so I need to know now if either of you will have a problem being led by someone who is essentially a squib."

"No problems here, brother," rumbled Josiah, with a toothy grin. "Your reputation for strategy proceeds you and magic's got nothing to do with that ability."

"I was in the Muggle military, so I have no problems taking orders from those without magic, so long as they're competent leaders. From what I've heard you are, so I don't foresee any problems, Auror Larabee," replied Nathan easily, his voice low and pleasantly melodic.

Nodding with a small smile at these votes of confidence in his leadership skills, Chris announced, "First things first. You both have outstanding records, but I'd like to get to know you on a personal level to see if we're all a good fit for a team. Teams who can't get along in peace time, don't stand a chance in battle. So I'd like each of you to come with Buck and me to Four Corners. We know a really good tavern there, where we can have some lunch and spend the afternoon talking. Oh, and I don't stand on formality within my team, so first names are fine. What do you say? Nathan? Josiah?"

Pleased at Larabee's approach, both men accepted and all four made their way down to the floo network. Whilst it was possible to apparate and disapparate from place to place within the office, it wasn't possible to get in and out of the building that way due to security measures. So it was the floo network or physically leave via their own two legs, then get Muggle transportation as they were in the heart of Denver.

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

Ezra and Vin had spent the weekend talking, fishing, flying, eating and generally getting on like newfound brothers. Vin had haltingly told Ezra all about the mess with Eli Joe and Ezra had confessed to using legilimency, apologising profusely and promising never to do so again without permission or life threatening circumstances. He'd also told Vin of his occupation and admitted to having read the file and experienced doubts as to Vin's guilt prior to seeing him in Four Corners. Vin had looked grateful for this knowledge and immediately forgiven the Southerner for the mental trespassing.

Neldy had been overjoyed at the opportunity to fuss over two people and had stuffed both young men with so much good food that even Vin was full. Vin slept for a solid ten hours each night in a warm bed with a loudly purring Achacius as company, under a ceiling full of stars, safe in the knowledge that no-one would be able to sneak up on him. Dressed in warm comfortable clothes, well rested and well fed, he started to lose the haunted, ragged look he'd had when Ezra had first met him. As for the southerner, he'd relaxed and smiled more than he had in the last six months.

Having called in to work sick, Ezra took Vin into Four Corners on Monday. Knowing that Yates was probably still prowling, Ezra took his broom in with Vin flying in falcon form beside him. Once in the village, Vin perched on Ezra's broad shoulder and rode along enjoying himself immensely as Ezra went into every shop. The southerner jauntily greeting every shopkeeper by name and enquired after their families, in a way that Vin took as both a genuinely concerned manner and a way to familiarise his new friend with the people in town. They'd spent a long time in the broom shop ogling the new Nimbus 2000's sleek lines before Ezra had ordered two, making the falcon squawk a little in horror at the expense. Ezra had just stroked a hand casually over his friend's ruffled feathers and exited the shop with the shopkeeper's enthusiastic thanks ringing in his ears.

Making sure that no-one was in listening distance, Ezra murmured in a voice too low for anyone but Vin to hear, "You need a broom, my friend, and mine is old so a replacement is sensible. Money is nothing to me, but your happiness makes me happy. Now stop digging your talons into my shoulder. This robe is a designer original."

Snapping his beak to show his ongoing disapproval at having so much money spent on him, Vin nonetheless eased up his grip. He'd argue with Ezra about the broom later. Honestly. The man could have bought himself a new broom and then given him the old yet perfectly servicable broom. There was no need for the extravagance of two new brooms. Particularly the top priced, latest model broom. With a few more beak snaps and a careful nip to the top of Ezra's ear for good measure, Vin turned to look with interest at the front of the shop they were about to enter. The window was crowded with owl stands and cages, cat baskets and toys, rat wheels and cages, and other pet oriented goods. Entering the store, he was overwhelmed with the sounds of screeching, croaking, miowing and hooting. As suddenly as it started, it stopped, leaving the store quiet and peaceful. Looking towards the curtained doorway behind the counter, he saw a short, sturdy witch with cropped grey hair and a gimlet eye watching them carefully.

"Adding to your menagerie again, are you, Fancy Man?"

Ezra flashed his most beguiling, gold-tinted, dimpled grin at the owner of the pet emporium, as he replied, "Greetings, Mistress Nettie. How are you today? And how is young Casey enjoying college?"

Shaking her head at the young charmer, who was also one of her best customers; Nettie came around the counter and reached up to gently stroke a gnarled finger down the soft feathers on the falcon's breast. Smiling when the bird closed its blue eyes and make a hurring noise of pleasure, she started at the fact that the falcon had blue eyes and turned to look at Ezra sharply. Correctly interpreting the subtle headshake, she replied, "What's this? No wizened crone remarks today? Well, since you asked, I'm tolerably well. No use complainin' since no-one listens. Casey is doin' real well. Getting decent marks and enjoying her learnin'. Want ta thank you for that letter of recommendation to your old Professor, too. She's been a real help to the girl, finding her a safe room and a part time job. Now, it's slow, so why don't you come back and help me put my latest blackberry pie out of its misery?"

Watching as Nettie closed the shop door, locked it and tapped the sign with her wand to change the writing from OPEN to BACK IN AN HOUR, Ezra reached up to reassuringly stroke Vin's wing as he ruffled his feathers nervously.

Leading Ezra through the curtain that separated the shop from the little hallway at the back, she turned and headed up the stairs to her little apartment. She only stayed here during the week. On weekends, she had a modest cabin in the woods near Ezra's extravagant home. His spells of protection had been extended to include her property and she showed her gratitude by treating him like family, in her own gruff way.

Once they were safely standing in Nettie's tiny kitchen, Ezra took his wand out and quickly cast every spell he knew that would prevent anyone from spying on them or simply stumbling in unannounced. Once that was done, he noted that the canny old witch had set three places at the table and was watching him expectantly. Holding his arm out straight, he encouraged, "It's alright, Vin, I trust Nettie implicitly."

Nettie's bright eyes watched as the falcon hopped its way down to Ezra's slender wrist and then hopped off his arm altogether, transforming into a slender, young man to land lightly on his feet in front of her.

"Vin Tanner, ma'am. Pleased ta meetcha," greeted Vin bashfully, blue eyes peering through his hair.

Ezra watched in amusement as the tough old crone melted into a puddle of mush as a result of his friend's little boy charm. It had taken him a while to get her to warm up to him, since he wasn't as open with strangers as Vin was and she was suspicious of anyone who acted like a 'used broom salesman', as she'd once called him. Chuckling at the memory, he moved to stand behind his usual seat at the table and waited to be invited to help himself to the mouth-watering confection before him.

"Nettie Wells, son. Ya might as well call me Ms Nettie, everybody else in town does. Except Mr Fancy Pants there, who calls me Mistress when he's not calling me a crone. Well, both of ya sit yourselves down and I'll get the coffee. Tell me why you're riding around in bird form, whilst yer at it," ordered Nettie, moving to the stove and taking up the coffee pot after tapping it with her wand.

Having eaten all of the pie, drunk two pots of coffee and told Nettie the whole sordid story, Vin returned to falcon form and his spot on Ezra's shoulder, happy to have made another new friend. It was strange, but Nettie had adopted him like she had Ezra and gave him a warm hug just before he transformed, just as she had Ez. The hug had stirred memories of his years with his Ma and a long forgotten visit to his grandmother. Sidling over, Vin cuddled up to the southerner's head and neck, unconsciously seeking comfort.

Frowning a little, Ezra nonetheless reached up and stroked his fingers softly over Vin's wing. Distracted by his friend, Ezra didn't notice where he was going and managed to walk straight into Auror Yates. Automatically apologising, Ezra cursed internally when he saw who he'd knocked over. Lifting his shoulder in a surreptitious sign for Vin to fly away, Ezra reached out a hand to help the cursing larger man to his feet. Damn his luck. Of all the people to bump into, it had to be this blowhard.

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

"Dammit Standish! Watch where you're going, you clumsy oaf! Barging around like a cave troll," grumbled Yates, brushing himself off and glaring at the apologetic southerner. He'd seen the bird fly away, but as his accidental assailant was leaving a pet emporium, he just assumed it was an owl. When he'd investigated the man in the past, he'd learned that Standish was an animal lover with a large collection of pets.

"Appeared to be an accident, brother Yates," declared Josiah, appearing behind the two with Nathan at his shoulder. "No harm, no foul."

Just as Yates was about to retort, all of them were distracted by a commotion in Potter's General Store. A flash of green light and a scream followed by some general crashing noises drew them a few steps towards the area. Suddenly Lucas James and some of his friends burst from the store, laughing and rough housing with each other. Gloria Potter appeared at the door looking uncharacteristically rumpled and distraught, her face splotchy and wet with tears. Heaving in a breath, she screamed after Lucas, "Murderer!"

Still moving towards the group of men, Josiah and Nathan were surprised when all three of the men drew wands and brandished them towards the two Aurors.

Ezra knew Lucas James and had his suspicions as to the loyalties of the whole James clan. Prepared for the move, he'd already drawn his wand in preparation to disarm the thugs. "Expelliarmis!"

Watching their wands fly towards the interfering southerner, all three turned on the spot and disapparated with matching smirks, confident in their ability to avoid prosecution.

Clutching the wands, Ezra made his way towards Gloria, who was slumped on the steps of her store sobbing breathlessly. Before he could get to her, he felt Nettie rush past him to gather the bereaved younger woman into her arms protectively. Ezra exchanged a grave look with the old woman before turning to peer into the store for any further danger.

Springing lightly up the steps, Ezra entered the shop and looked around at the wanton destruction the louts had caused. Rounding a pile of knocked over boxes; he saw the corpse of Robert Potter. The man was completely unmarked and could have just been unconscious were it not for the open eyes, staring flat and stunned beyond the veil. Sighing sadly, Ezra crouched to feel for a pulse and when he found none, he gently closed Robert's eyes. He'd gotten to know the other man over a poker game or two in the Saloon, when Robert would come in occasionally for a sociable libation and game. He'd been a decent man, a faithful husband, a loving father and the town would miss him.

"Are you the Auror assigned to Four Corners?"

Ezra looked up into the concerned light blue eyes of Auror Sanchez. He'd attended a seminar once just to hear the eccentric man lecture before staying back with a few others afterwards for a rigorous debating session, so Ezra knew who he was. Shaking his head, Ezra returned his gaze to the body at his feet saying, "No, we've never really needed one. Despite the boorish behaviour of the ranch hands that come in now and then, it's pretty peaceful here for the most part."

"Who are you then? You were pretty quick to disarm them?"

Turning to the slightly hostile black man, Ezra arched an eyebrow delicately and retorted, "You're the stranger in town; I could ask the same of you, sir."

Josiah chuckled and nudged his friend, saying, "He's got you there, Nate."

Nathan scowled at Josiah. The atmosphere in the store seemed to thicken with tension, which was acerbated by the sudden appearance of Chris Larabee and Buck Wilmington.

"Damn, boys. Can't leave you for five minutes without you finding trouble," boomed Buck, whose smile slid from his face at the sight of the body. "What happened here?"

Recognising the newcomers as more Aurors, Ezra decided to hand things over to them. Holding the wands out to Sanchez, he said, "Just moments ago, Robert Potter was allegedly murdered by Lucas James and his friends, Billy Cox and Silas Robertson. These are their wands, which I'm sure will provide the evidence of the curse used and by whom. Lucas James is the nephew of the owner of one of the larger ranching enterprises outside Four Corners, as Auror Larabee is aware. I was not a witness to the crime, so I shall take my leave."

Catching Ezra's arm as the man tried to ease past him to the door, Chris growled, "Hold on, Standish. How did you know I'd taken on an Auror's position again? You're still with the Muggle police, aren't you?"

Giving an elegant one shouldered shrug, Ezra smiled disarmingly, saying, "Once an Auror, always an Auror, Mr Larabee. It's not about the magic or the badge, it's about the mindset. Now, if you'll excuse me, I really do have somewhere else I need to be."

Left with a handful of air as the sneaky southerner managed to squirm out of his grip, Chris growled again.

"Who was that?"

Chuckling, Buck turned to find an equally amused Josiah and angry Nathan, explaining, "That there was Ezra P Standish. He's the result of two very old, very powerful, very dark lines of Wizard families. It was rumoured that Ezekiel Standish was a cousin of Salazar Slytherin and spoke Parseltongue just as well as his cousin. The other half of his family are descended from a rotten branch of the Ravenclaw family, disowned by Rowena. Malfoys, I think. Pretty much every member of the family was a Death Eater at the time of the last upheaval."

Horrified, Nathan declared, "And you said he was in law enforcement."

Smoothing his hand over his moustache thoughtfully, Buck said, "Yeah well, it's only Muggle law enforcement. FBI, I think. He's not too popular there, I've heard. Rumours of corruption."

"There's a shock," snarked Nathan, disliking the man more with every passing minute.

"I dunno. I've played poker with him in town here and he seems like an okay guy. Smart mouth on him, which got him on Chris' bad side almost immediately, but he's tight with Nettie Wells and all the women in the town are fond of him. The kids flock to him and Tiny Anderson, the town vet, reckons he's a marvel with animals. Hard to fool kids and animals into thinking you're a good guy, if you're not. Ms Nettie don't cotton to just anyone either, so I reckon he must be the black sheep of his family. Breaking away from being evil like them and turning out to be a decent sort, ya know."

Josiah nodded thoughtfully. Something tweaked at the edges of his memory, turning his gaze distant and melancholy.

Nathan noticed and asked, "What's wrong, 'Siah?"

"There was a Patrick Standish in the last upheaval. He was a Death Eater, as was all his family, but he turned informant for the Aurors. Rumour had it that he was betrayed by his own brother and that his father killed him for bringing shame on the family. I wonder if he's related to Ezra. The P could stand for Patrick," rumbled Josiah, picturing Ezra's face and trying to recall if he'd seen a picture of Patrick Standish.

Shaking himself from his thoughts, Chris started issuing orders for processing the crime scene and the apprehension of the three suspects. He'd have to corner Standish at some point to get a statement.

None of them noticed the green eyed rat, listening avidly to their conversation. Scurrying away, Ezra was just about to transfor in the alley beside the store when he was clutched in the talons of a falcon and swept up onto the roof, where he was gently dropped. Transforming, he sat down and smiled as Vin transformed and sat beside him.

"Some strange doin's in yer town, pard," suggested Vin, bumping his shoulder against his distracted friend's.

"Not just in my town, I'm afraid, Vin. According to an distant relative of mine in England, the Dark Lord has arisen and the Death Eaters have reformed. The good guys are pinning their hopes on an eleven year old boy."

"The Potter boy? Hey, he ain't kin of the family here?"

"It's possible, Vin. You now how... close pureblood families are."

"Is it true? What they was sayin' 'bout yer Pa?"

A sad, slightly bitter smile twisted Ezra's mouth as he nodded, replying, "Yes, my father was inducted into the Death Eaters on his seventeenth birthday, as it was his father's wish. He never really believed in the cause, he just did what was expected of him as the first born son. It wasn't until the upheaval that he saw what truly evil acts were perpetrated by the Death Eaters. Suddenly, he was confronted by the terror on the faces of Muggle women and children as they were tortured and killed by the people he'd grown up with and thought he'd known. He was married to my mother and had me by this stage and couldn't help but think how he'd feel if it were us being hurt and terrorised that way. Knowing he wasn't strong enough to fight against his family directly, he secretly approached a distant relative who had links to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and offered to give him information. It worked for a while, but then his brother Frederick caught him sending an owl and turned him over to his father. Frederick had always been second best in his father's eyes and his jealousy allowed no fraternal love or loyalty. Maurice was outraged and shamed by my father's betrayal and used the killing curse to dispatch him, after using the Crucio curse to get all the details of his activities. The relative, a distant second cousin I believe, was hunted down and killed also."

"Ya know the name o' the cousin?"

Turning to look at Vin, curious about the strained quality of his voice, Ezra replied, "No, it was never written in his diary, which is where I read most of this. Mother would never speak of it, she's still angry with my father for choosing to fight on the side of right. She feels he sacrificed our happiness and stature in society, for what she deems a worthless cause. Money, appearances and power are everything to my mother. I managed to get the story of what happened after the diary ended from an elderly Great-Aunt who remained fond of me, despite our disgrace and exile from the Standish family home. All that is in the diary is the cousin's initials, JT."

A sharp nod and a harsh gulping noise were all the response the Texan gave.

"Vin? Do you know anything about this?"

Clenching his fists, Vin turned to Ezra with fierce blue eyes and growled, "JT. James Tanner. My Pa! He was a private detective in Texas and came out here following a trail, when he got approached by an informant. Came back ta Texas but used ter get owls that made him mad as hell but kinda sad too. Then one day he just up 'n disappeared. Ma was frantic and tried ta find him, but no-one was interested in helping her 'cos Pa was... he was a werewolf."

Keeping his face neutral when Vin turned to him with a fierce look of love and pride on his face that defied the other man to defile his father, Ezra just nodded encouragingly.

Seeing none of the disgust he usually saw on people's faces when they found out about his Pa, Vin relaxed a bit and went on. "Weren't his fault. He was a Muggle minding his own business 'n doing some hunting, when he happened on what he thought was a wolf attack in the mountains. He shot the wolf, but since they's normal bullets it just made the critter mad. Next thing he knows, he's waking up in a hospital badly mauled. Ma knew what had got him 'n tried to get him transferred to a wizard hospital, but they wouldn't take him. Ma was a witch 'n handy with herbs 'n potions, so she would make Pa the wolfsbane potion and he'd spend a few nights a month locked in the cellar. He never hurt or bit no-one!"

Rubbing Vin's back, Ezra soothed, "I've no doubt he didn't, Vin. From what I've read about him and what I know of you, I know your father was a good and decent man."

Studying Ezra's eyes and face for a lie, he found nothing but truth and compassion. Lowering his stinging eyes to his hands, he said forlornly, "Aurors found Pa's body outside town. Shot twice in the heart wit' silver bullets, but there's all kinda burns 'n marks from various curses on him too. Reckon they had them some fun wit' him 'fore they k-killed him."

A sad sigh gusted from the Southerner as he slid an arm around Vin and hugged him to his side in a brotherly gesture. There was nothing he could say that would take the pain from his young friend, so he just sat in sympathetic silence with him as Vin cried quietly.

Sniffing and wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, Vin mumbled, "Ma tried ta find out who'd done it, but she's warned off by a Dark witch who used the Crucio curse on her. Threatened to use it on me too, so Ma packed us up and moved us ta a one horse Muggle town in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico. Wasn't there long 'n her heart gave out, whether from grief or the damage from the curse I dunno. Muggles found her bible and traced my Great-Grandfather, who agreed to take me in, since my parents 'n grandparents were all dead and he was all the family I had left. Nasty old bastard he was too. Used ta beat me every day 'n twice on Sundays. Locked me in the root cellar every full moon, just in case I's like my Pa. Crazy old coot. Hate small, dark places ta this day 'cos o' that. He was a Dark wizard 'n wanted me ter be just like him, but I couldn't. Weren't in me ta hate 'n hurt a fella just 'cos they's different ta me."

Ezra noted that Vin's accent was getting thicker and he tightened his hold on him.

Smiling sadly at his friend for the support, Vin then turned to stare at the street without really seeing anything, saying, "Couldn't take it no more, so I ran off into the woods 'n was lucky enough ta meet up wit' Kojay, who took me ta the rez. I stayed wit' Kojay 'n his family for a couple o' years. Then I turns eleven 'n the Ministry came fer me 'n dragged me off ta a wizard school for orphans 'n the poor. Weren't bad there, they gave us food 'n a warm bed 'n an education, but we had ta work for it 'n there weren't no ... no love or warmth. The other kids thought I's funny or something, 'cos they'd pick on me. I just went my own way until I's old enough ta leave. I's never good at anything 'cept Care of Magical Creature, Herbology, Flying 'n Transfiguration. Oh 'n Defence Against The Dark Arts."

"That's still quite an impressive list of subjects, Vin," encouraged Ezra, wishing his friend could see how brilliant he was and stop putting himself down.

Shrugging, Vin muttered bitterly, "Weren't impressive enough for the Ministry of Magical Law Enforcement. Tried ta get in ter train as an Auror but they didn't want me. Lived on the streets fer a couple of months, then an old bounty hunter called Hank took me on as an apprentice. Been making a pretty good living from it too. Until the whole mess with Eli Joe."

Silence settle on them as Vin leaned in Ezra's warm embrace, which tightened in response.

TBC


	10. Chapter 10

Chris was standing on the street, looking at the crowd who'd gathered to gawp and gossip in front of the crime scene. The departmental medical examiner had apparated in and done their investigation already, so the undertaker had come in to take Mr Potter's earthly remains to his mortuary until such time as Mrs Potter was up to making the arrangements. Ms Nettie had taken Gloria up to her apartment and given her a calming draught. The couple's children were away at school and would remain there until Gloria's sister picked them up took them to her house in Wyoming. Gloria would join them the next day, when she was over the initial shock, before they all returned for the funeral in a couple of days. In the meantime, Josiah and Nathan had put locking spells on the shop after ensuring that everything was shut down and secured. Gloria's cat had been taken to the Pet Emporium, but Robert's owl had disappeared.

Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, Chris turned to look up at the roof of the Potter's general store. There, sitting large as life, side by side, were Standish and the fugitive Vin Tanner. Just as he opened his mouth to shout at them and reached for a wand he no longer had, Standish locked eyes with him and touched two fingers to his forehead in a sort of salute before gripping harder to Tanner, standing and disapparating with a wink and a smirk. Frowning, Chris ground his teeth so hard sparks flew from them.

Buck was standing on the porch of Lillian's Fashion House, chatting up the bubbly blonde owner of said store instead of the official questioning he should be doing, when he glanced over at his old friend and boss. Seeing him look up before an expression of anger set on his face, Buck witnessed the sparks flying from Chris' fingers and yelped, "Uh oh, time to run interference. 'Scuse me, darlin', duty calls."

Leaving a bewildered and put out Lillian behind, Buck quickly ran to Chris' side and looked up in the same direction but saw only an empty roof. Grasping Chris' shoulder, he asked, "What's up,stud?"

"That damned squirrelly Southern know-it-all is harbouring a fugitive, that's what. Just saw him on the roof with Tanner, but before I could do anything they disapparated. He's lucky I don't have my magic anymore..."

"Uh, Chris. Ya might want to rein in your temper there, old dog. Ya might set something aflame," cautioned Buck, patting himself as another spark flew off Chris and started smouldering on the taller man's jacket. "Come on. Let's go and get you a replacement wand. Seems things are loosening up a mite."

Startled, Chris glanced down at his fists and saw tiny sparks and a few puffs of smoke. He hadn't committed any acts of unintentional magic since he was a small child. A tiny flicker of hope blossomed in his chest at the thought that he may actually become a fully functioning magical member of his new team. Allowing Buck to steer him, he flexed his hands and shook them out.

Wanderful Wendell's was the only wand shop in town but, despite the awful name, it stocked quality wands. Arthur Wendell was the latest in a long line of wand maker's to run the shop and he emerged from the workshop at the back, with a cheerful smile at the sound of the tinkling bell on the door.

"Welcome to my shop, gentlemen. How may I help you? Replacement or repair?"

When Chris remained silent, Buck stepped up and answered the tiny man who was looking at them over his bifocals with bright, bird-like eyes. "My friend here needs a replacement wand."

"Very good," replied Arthur, almost hopping around the counter and eyeing up the surly blond. Muttering under his breath and making tutting noises, Arthur snatched a tape measure out of thin air and swiftly measured Chris's forearm before tossing the tape back in the air where it winked out of sight again. Poking and prodding Chris, ignoring the warning growls being issued by his customer, he suddenly spun away and scampered up a rolling ladder.

"Shut up, Buck. You know I hate wand shopping," snarled Chris, slapping Buck's chest with the back of his hand.

Shocked by a zap of static electricity from Larabee's hand, Buck chuckled happily anyway as he rubbed his abused chest, enjoying his friend's discomfort. "Stud, you've only had to buy a wand once before and you were just a kid."

"Well, once was more than enough, alright."

"Try this one, it's blackthorn with a dragon heartstring core," suggested the spry old man, holding out a long slender box, oblivious to the discomfort of his customer. When nothing happened at all, despite Chris giving it a concise wave, Arthur pursed his lips before scurrying off again.

After the twentieth wand had failed to produce anything, Chris' tiny hope was starting to fizzle. Even Buck could feel himself deflating somewhat. But Arthur just grinned at them joyfully and announced, "It's been so long since I've had a difficult customer, but we shall persevere. I do love a challenge."

Gazing over the piles of discarded wands and their boxes, Chris huffed unhappily and decided that either the next wand worked or he was leaving.

Waving a very dusty box aloft as he returned from the top right corner of his shop, Arthur cried, "This is the one, I just know it. It's one of the first ones I made, when I was serving as an exchange apprentice with Ollivander in London. It's very rigid, not a lot of swish, made of hornbeam wood with a core of thestral tail hair. It's quite a masterful piece of wand making, if I do say so myself, but it's been tricky to place. Wands of hornbeam tend to be picky about who they choose, but once they choose you they are utterly loyal and will not work properly for anyone else. Thestral hair is also a somewhat temperamental material, but from what I've heard of you, Auror Larabee, I feel it may suit you."

Looking at the wand, it was very basic. About twelve inches long, it was fairly thick, with an broken line undulating from tip to handle and seemed to have no give in it whatsoever. Reaching out a suddenly shaking hand, Chris took the wand from its box. Warmth spread through his hand and moved up his arm as the wand seemed to mould itself to his hand. Feeling as though he'd been using this wand his whole life, Chris pointed it at the fireplace where a cheerful, crackling fire burst into life.

Clapping enthusiastically, Arthur beamed and cheered. Buck slapped Chris on the back and whooped loud enough to wake the dead. Chris just stood and stared at his new wand in awe. Then he looked up and grinned at Buck in a way the moustached man hadn't seen in years. Unable to contain himself, the jubilant man grabbed the blond in a bear hug that lifted the slightly smaller man off his feet.

"Put me down, Buck. Dammit, Buck, put me down!"

Vin and Ezra apparated on the outside edge of Ezra's land. They'd have to walk or fly from here, since Ezra's property was protected by a plethora of curses and spells to prevent people using Apparation onto and off the land. Staggering away from Ezra with a groan, Vin doubled over and vomited into the bushes. Concerned, Ezra followed and stood behind his friend with an arm around his chest to support him.

Alarmed, Ezra demanded, "Vin! What is it?"

Spitting and wiping his mouth on his sleeve, Vin leaned back against Ezra's comforting, solid form and rasped, "Never got the hang of Apparating. Saw someone splinch theirselves once 'n must have scared myself offa it. I've side-along apparated a couple o' times before, but makes me upchuck every time."

"Ah, I am sorry, Vin," apologised the Southerner, gently rubbing his hand over the thick sweater covering Vin's flat stomach. "I should have warned you, but Mr Larabee spotted us and I felt it prudent to remove ourselves from the vicinity with alacrity."

"Aw hell, Larabee saw us? That means you'll be on a wanted list for harbouring a fugitive now," cried Vin, pushing away from Ezra and starting to walk towards the house. "Dammit, I didn't want to bring trouble ta yer door, Ez."

Jogging to catch up with the distressed Texan, Ezra ducked as Vin gestured wildly and nearly beheaded him, as he continued to stalk towards the house and berate himself. Catching hold of the arm, Ezra spun Vin around and took him firmly by the shoulders. Giving Vin a little shake, he laughed and told his friend, "Vin! Trouble finds me whether you're here or not. And I don't think that Larabee is the sort to take out a warrant so someone else can catch us. I think he'll try to hunt me down in his own. Believe me, that man hated me long before I met you."

Searching Ezra's face, Vin saw he was speaking the truth. Nodding once and patting his friend's chest, he turned back towards the house. "Why does Larabee hate you?"

"Mainly because I tossed his drunk ass out of the Saloon for Inez a number of times. His family were killed and he never really forgave the world for not killing him too, so he crawled into a bottle of cheap whiskey and refused to come out. He and Wilmington were away at a conference, leaving his wife Sarah and son Adam on their ranch just outside Four Corners here. He'd received death threats over the course of his career from various wizards he'd sent to jail, so it was widely assumed that one of them had finally followed through by killing his family in retaliation."

"Sounds like you don't believe that though," queried Vin, glancing over at the troubled expression on his friend's handsome face.

Giving his elegant shrug, Ezra confirmed, "Not really, no. Mind you, I have no conclusive proof or I'd have handed it over to the Auror in charge of the investigation obviously. It's a cold case now, since they never found the culprit and there were no trails to follow. Since I moved here, I've been fortunate to win the confidence of some of the townspeople and they've given me snippets here and there about the history of the town. According to one person, who's known Larabee since he returned from college, he came back with Buck Wilmington and a girl in tow. Both were friends from college, although it's rumoured that it was more than friendship with the girl. Since he'd been at college, the Connolly's had moved here. A father and daughter, who had moved away from their previous town after the death of her mother. Hank was possessive of his daughter, Sarah, which was understandable given his recent bereavement, I suppose."

By this time they'd reached the porch and Ezra settled on a rocking chair, whilst Vin sprawled on the swing seat.

"There'd already been some dischord between the three, with the girl - Ella Gaines - trying to drive a wedge between Wilmington and Larabee. According to Ms Nettie, Gaines was a real Jekyll and Hyde type. Ella was from one of the darkest wizarding families, whilst Larabee was from one of the most upstanding, so it was surprising to most that they had anything in common. Ms Nettie seems to think it was Chris' way of rebelling. It wasn't the first time that he'd been in a relationship with a 'bad girl'. It seemed that he naturally gravitated towards that type. Given that the Larabee family lineage is so clean that it squeaks, you can understand how disturbin' his parents found his choices. Ella played on that too, causing friction between Chris and his parents. The typical actions of someone needing to dominate and control their partner, making the partner believe that they're the only person who loves and understands them. Unfortunately, Gaines didn't factor in how stubborn, strong willed and independent Chris can be. Nor how he inspired loyalty in his friends or how loyal he is to his family deep down. She took a teenager's disgruntlement with what he perceived as his parents trying to rule his life and tried to make Chris something he wasn't and had no interest in being. A mindless love puppet."

Welcoming Achacius onto his lap when the feline appeared at his feet with a mew of enquiry, Vin asked curiously, "What about Buck?"

"Wilmington? His maternal grandfather was a wizard and his grandmother a Veela. His mother possessed the qualities of her mother and was irresistible and ... well, let's say fun-loving. As a result, his father could be any number of men. But by all accounts, his mother adored him and did a wonderful job of raising him, making sure that he had everything he could want. As for Wilmington, he loved her completely, believing her to be a saint, and Merlin help the person who says anything against her. She was killed when he was in his first year of college," replied Ezra, jealous of anyone who had a devoted mother. His own mother was cold and distant, which meant they had a contentious relationship at best.

Rubbing Achacius' tufted ears and almost vibrating with the strength of the creature's purring, Vin noted the look of jealousy. Knowing from previous conversations that Ezra and his mother had a strained relationship, he guessed that Ezra envied Buck's close relationship with his mother. Vin and his mother had been devoted to each other in the short time they'd had together, so he felt sorry for his friend. Although, Ms Nettie seemed to fill the role of a nurturing mother to the Southerner, so maybe he hadn't missed out altogether.

"Anyway, Wilmington is nothing if not loyal and he refused to be parted from Larabee. Then Larabee met Sarah Connelly and according to Gloria Potter, who was one of Sarah's friends, it was an instant match. All thought of Ella was gone and all of his energy was spent winning Sarah. It wasn't an easy path, as her father objected to the match vigorously and Ella was a constant source of trouble, but true love will find a way. Larabee and Sarah eloped, helped by Buck, and they all settled in Denver until Adam was born. Then the family moved back here to the ranch Larabee still lives on."

"What did Ella and Sarah's father do, during that time?"

Rubbing a thumb over his lower lip, Ezra replied, "Hank Connolly cursed the union when he heard they'd run off to marry and left town, heading for Indiana where he lives to this day, I believe. Ella Gaines had a spectacular and very public fight with Larabee in the streets of Denver when he returned from his honeymoon, before telling him that he would always be hers and that he'd realise he'd made a mistake by marrying Sarah. She disappeared that day and no-one has seen her since."

"You think she killed Sarah and Adam?"

"I'm not sure if she did it herself, but I think she's behind it. I've read the medical reports on the condition of their bodies and they didn't die easily. From what I read, I extrapolated that the boy was tortured whilst the mother was forced to watch. When the child finally could take no more and died, the mother was tortured and killed. That speaks of a personal grudge. They weren't possessed of any knowledge, so there was no reason to torture them for information. The only reason to make the child suffer, would be to watch the pain the mother went through as she watched. The evil intent speaks of an extremely dark and deranged mind. I've reviewed the people who have threatened Larabee and none of them fit that profile."

Feeling sick to his stomach at the images that flooded his mind, Vin cuddled Achacius for comfort. Voice muffled by the catzle's thick fur as he pressed his face into Achacius' neck ruff, Vin asked, "If ya don't like Larabee, why're ya going into alla this. You're not even an Auror."

Smirking, Ezra explained, "Dark wizards and witches crop up on Muggle wanted lists more often than you'd think, so I have always kept abreast of the Ministry's Most Wanted list and any violent crimes within Denver and the surrounding towns. But in this particular case, I was asked to investigate by Gloria Potter. She still grieved for the loss of her friend and wanted justice for Sarah and little Adam."

"Would ya ever consider bein' an Auror?"

Ezra bent down and picked Leonard up, since the ancient Kneazel had condescended to hobble out to him. Carefully settling the animal on his lap, Ezra said, "I'm not sure, Vin. I do know that I'll be tending my resignation from the FBI tonight. I can no longer abide working with the narrow-minded, petty, incompetents that I am currently forced to suffer. It's only a matter of time before I'm wounded again either by a lack of back up or friendly fire. Uncle Alastor seems to think there's a battle coming, so I'd say I'm going to be more useful fighting in the magical world."

All that could be heard on the porch was the loud purring of Leonard and Achacius, as each wizard contemplated the fight to come.

TBC


	11. Chapter 11

"Why didn't ya go after the men who killed Mr Potter today, Ez? I thought Mrs Potter was ya friend," asked Vin, suddenly breaking the comfortable silence.

"Because I have no jurisdiction here, Vin. As you pointed out before, I'm not an Auror. I turned any pertinent information I had over to the proper authorities, as well as the very compelling evidence of the murder weapon, so if they can't round up the men and make a case against them, then there's something very wrong."

"Gloria is a strong woman, with two very good reasons for getting on with her life. Josh and Beth are delightful children who will be an immense source of comfort to their mother. Stuart James will try to protect his nephew, but the case against Lucas is airtight so the boy will go to jail and not before time. That boy has been making a nuisance of himself since birth, but he's become a real menace since reaching his magical age of majority."

Having turned their reports and all the evidence over to the Magical Law Enforcement Patrol officers who came by, Larabee and his men returned to the Saloon. Now seated around a table near the back, they were enjoying a meal, a drink and getting to know each other. Josiah and Nathan had both been quietly thrilled to hear that Chris' magics were starting to re-emerge. After admiring Chris' new wand, Josiah announced his intention of taking his wand in to be recalibrated the next day. Given the upcoming fight, he though it best to start with his wand in tip top shape. Nathan always insured that his wand was regularly maintained, along with with his first aid qualifications; the two were intrinsically linked. Buck was required to keep him wand maintained as part of his job.

Checking the tavern to ensure that Yates wasn't there, Buck leaned in and spoke in a low voice to his new colleagues, "Chris saw Vin Tanner with Ezra Standish today, looking downright chummy. Looks like Standish may be harbouring a wanted man."

"Wouldn't surprise me," grunted Nathan, his disgust with the Southerner obvious. "I asked an old army buddy of mine, who works for the FBI now if he could tell me anything about Standish. Greg says that the man's record is perfect on paper, insofar as arrest and conviction rates go, but it's riddled with reprimands from superiors. Apparently he doesn't work or play well with others and doesn't accept authority too well either. Got a real smart mouth on him and rarely reins it in. He's the best undercover agent the agency has ever seen and I couldn't find anything that indicated he was using magic to achieve that end. The most alarming thing is the rumours of corruption."

"What sort of corruption," asked Chris sharply, his eyes boring into Nathan. Since seeing Tanner with Standish on the roof, his blood burned with the need to bring them both in. If there was anything he hated, it was murderers. Followed closely by murderers accomplices.

Grimacing, Nathan waved a hand dismissively and answered, "The rumours are all based on Standish's extravagant lifestyle. You know, expensive clothes, dining out a lot at fancy restaurants, only drinks the best liquor, lives in a penthouse in the nicest area of Denver and drives a sports car. The magical world knows that he's old money in the magical world, but Muggle records only show his earnings with the FBI. Obviously, they've leapt to the conclusion that he's supplementing his income with under the table payoffs, but there's no proof."

Josiah clears his throat and added, "His colleagues would also be jealous of his success. His naturally arrogant and aloof nature wouldn't endear him to them either."

Picturing the smugly smirking face that made him want to hit the younger wizard whenever he saw him, Chris snorted his concurrence.

Knowing what Chris was thinking, Josiah smiled and told them, "I know someone who works within the Muggle alphabet agencies too. Marcus told me that he's heard that Ezra is about to leave the FBI, since he's fed up with the distrust and has been left unprotected by his back up a couple of times now. Apparently, the CIA, NSA and muggle A.T.F. are all waiting to scoop him up. Either they don't believe the corruption rumours or they're willing to overlook them in order to own such a valuable asset."

A bad feeling suddenly started to crawl over Chris and he glared at Josiah, who just gazed back at him benignly, a slight twinkle in his light blue eyes. A smile tugged at his lips as the profiler continued his findings.

"I've been making a few queries within the magical world too. Standish is reported by all who've encountered him to be the most powerful and talented wizard they've met. One of his old Professors told me that he was an exceptional student with an eidetic memory and a calm, organised manner under pressure. Despite the fact that he wasn't a popular student, he had a charm about him that meant he was left alone rather than bullied. Professor McGonigal told me that she'd grown to be quite fond of the boy, as had a couple of his other professors. Minerva told me that Standish doesn't trust easily, but once he's decided to befriend you nothing will shift him from your side. He was the secret advocate of anyone younger who was being bullied, or needed help. She only knew of a couple of things he did, but they were enough to convince her that he didn't deserve to be placed in Slytherin. Then there's his love of animals, both of the magical and muggle worlds. Silvanus Kettleburn had him in his Care of Magical Creatures classes for a while and told me that he'd only encountered the same aptitude in one or two students in his entire career. He was awed by the fact that Standish had been adopted by a feral kneazle and stated that both wild and domestic animals just seemed to innately trust the boy."

Buck leaned back in his chair and directed a triumphant smile at his grumpy leader. It seemed as though Sanchez was on his side when it came to the green-eyed wizard. Just to bring the point home, he asked, "You think Standish has taken Tanner in 'cos of this protective streak, don't you, Josiah?"

"I think it's highly probable, Buck. What's more, from what I've learned of him, the boy hates injustice and champions those he feels have been unjustly accused or mistreated. I'd bear that in mind when viewing Tanner's guilt. Severus Snape reluctantly informed me that the boy was an accomplished Legilimens and Occlumens whilst at Hogwarts and he was just a child then. His abilities would only have strengthened with time and practice. Snape is a hard and bitter man, who is almost impossible to impress, but I could tell that he was proud of Standish as a fellow Slitherin."

Heaving a sigh, Chris resigned himself to the fact that half his team had already adopted the irritating Southerner. At least Buck had met him. Suddenly suspicious of how Josiah had accumulated all of this information in a relatively short time, he eyed Josiah and demanded, "Have you met Standish personally?"

Gracing his boss with a toothy grin, Josiah replied succinctly, "Yup."

Rolling his eyes, Chris gave a gesture to indicate that his profiler should expand on that answer. Merlin help him, this lot were going to try his limited patience.

"Standish was at a Muggle seminar I gave on criminal profiling. The questions he raised afterwards were both thoughtful and thought-inspiring. He and I, along with a few others, spent a thoroughly enjoyable hour or so after the lecture working our way through some challenging discussions. But we never spoke alone and we've not stayed in contact, so I can't say I really know the man," explained Josiah, his face clearly showing his interest in getting to know the intriguing man better. "Knowing the Standish family, then speaking with Ezra, made me aware of the curious dichotomy and I felt compelled to investigate him further. I have to say that everything I've learned has just made me like him more."

With a sinking heart and rising blood pressure, Chris realised he was going to have to at least meet with Standish. The fact that Nathan looked as unhappy about the prospect as he felt made him feel a little better. Misery did love company after all.

"Inez!"

"Si, Senor Larabee?"

"We need to contact Standish, do you have a way of doing that? I know that you, Gloria and Nettie are friends with him."

Suspicious, since she knew the two men disliked each other, Inez asked, "Why do you need to see Senor Ezra? Is it to do with what happened today?"

"It's alright, Inez darlin'. We just want to talk to him," purred Buck. For some reason, Inez was immune to his natural charms, which just made her all the more desirable in his eyes.

Shifting so she stood with her tray against one hip and her hand on the other, Inez glared down at the rogue who had been pursuing her ever since they met. Deciding that she would send an owl to Ezra and let him make up his own mind, she started collecting their dirty plates, saying, "I will send him a message, but it will be up to him as to whether he contacts you."

"That's all we're asking, Senorita," agreed Josiah, helpfully handing her Nathan's plate and smiling in what he hoped was a reassuring manner.

Nodding her thanks, she waited a minute to see if they had any other requests before returning to the kitchen.

Buck watched her hips switch as she walked away, placed his hand over his heart and gave a wistful sigh.

"Forget it, big dog. The lady said nunca and she meant nunca," chuckled Chris, thrilled that there was a woman who was immune to his friend's charms.

"Aw now, Chris, you now I'm wearing her down," mumbled Buck, looking at Larabee with wide, hurt eyes.

Vin looked up at the window at the sound of tapping. Ezra had been reading to him, an activity they both found enjoyable of an evening, but the Southerner had dropped off. Deprived of the dulcet tones, Vin had been mulling over the story so far. Nudging the dozing southerner with his sock clad foot, Vin called, "Owl, Ez."

One jade green eye popped open to glare balefully at his companion before he drawled, "And you couldn't retrieve the message, why?"

"'Cos Leonard is comfortable 'n I don't want my boys clawed all ta hell by a cranky Kneazel," explained Vin good-naturedly, waving a hand at his lower body where Leonard had sprawled over Vin's thighs, groin and belly and was snoring like a grampus.

The owl tapped again impatiently, as Ezra assessed the validity of Vin's response. Accepting that Leonard would most likely express severe displeasure at being disturbed, he hauled himself off the comfortable couch and went to the window. Grabbing a handful of owl treats from the bowl on the windowsill, he opened the window and accepted the parchment before offering the treats. Seeing that it was Inez's owl, Pancho, he gave the bird an affectionate scratch once the treats where consumed. Receiving a dignified hoot in thanks, he quickly read his message.

"Well, well. Seems Larabee is taking the direct route and inviting me to meet him," said Ezra, his delight in this turn of events shining in his eyes.

Alarmed, Vin squawked, "Ya ain't goin', are ya?"

"Of course I am. I've done nothing wrong, Vin. You are an innocent man, falsely accused, therefore I see no issue with my inviting you to stay with me. Besides, Larabee thinks he saw me with you but he has no concrete proof of that, therefore there is no charge to be laid. Also, I know that Aurors Jackson and Sanchez have been asking around about me, the latter for several years, and I'm avidly curious to know why."

"We know why! They want to use you to catch me!"

"Calm down, we don't know that at all."

Pancho snapped his beak, impatient to be released with or without a return message.

"I am sorry, Pancho. Forgive me," apologised Ezra, sitting at the little desk near the window to quickly write out a note to Inez. Giving it to Pancho, he watched the owl take off and then closed and locked the window. "No-one but Nettie knows of your falcon form, so you can come with me. I promise we can take the floo network, or I'll take my broom and you can fly."

Nervously stroking his hands over Leonard, massaging the old Kneazel to his utter drooling contentment, Vin nodded and continued to fret silently.

Fondly watching the man who had quickly claimed the part of his heart that he'd unconsciously been holding for a younger brother, Ezra walked over and put his hand on top of the shaggy curls ruffling them lightly. "Stop it. I can look after myself. And you and anyone else I choose. I've been trained by the best defensive wizards there are and have escaped the clutches of far more nefarious sorts than Larabee and his lot."

Glaring up at his suddenly playful friend, Vin reached up to pushed his hair off his face. "Larabee has three friends."

"And I have you, as well as half of the town," said Ezra complacently, sitting on the coffee table in front of the sofa Vin was reclined on. "Believe me, Vin, if it came down to choosing sides, people would choose me."

"How come?"

"Aside from my sparkling personality?" Ezra laughed at the rolling blue eyes of his friend and gave him a light poke to the Texan's ticklish ribs in response. "Because I own half the town and they are my tenants, Vin. I treat them well and they respond in kind."

"Half the town! Jist how rich are ya?"

Laughing aloud at the stunned look on Vin's face, Ezra slapped his shoulder and went back to his own sofa, picking up his book on the way. Making himself comfortable and opening the book to the marked page, he said, "Rich enough for several people over several lifetimes, Vin. Now, shall we continue on our journey with Huck, Tom and Jim?"

Back at the Saloon, Inez sashayed over to the Auror's table, looking around for anyone intent on eavesdropping as she went. Setting down the fresh drinks, she voiced quietly, "Senor Larabee, I have received a reply. Senor Ezra says he'd be delighted to meet with you all for a meal here at one o'clock tomorrow. I have a private room upstairs and he's requested you meet him there."

"Thanks, Inez."

"De nada."

"Well, boys. Guess we'll get our answers tomorrow. Now, now offense, but I'm going looking for some friendlier company," declared Buck, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Shaking their heads indulgently, the other three waved him off and sat back to contemplate what the next day would bring.

TBC


	12. Chapter 12

Ezra had spoken to his supervisor at the FBI that morning, emailing his resignation letter with immediate effect. His office had no personal effects to be collected and he'd erased his computer and shredded any hard copy files before leaving on Friday. Closing that chapter of his life with barely a sigh of regret, Ezra looked forward to the next chapter. First order of business would be clearing Vin of the erroneous murder charge and getting the bounty lifted from his head.

Touching down lightly on the roof of the Saloon, Ezra leaned his broom against the chimney and made his way towards the fire escape. Climbing down, he paused on the landing on the first floor and held his arm out in response to Vin's whistled call.

Landing on Ezra's forearm, Vin hopped up to settle on his shoulder hurring at him anxiously. The Texan was still a bit nervous about this meeting, but he trusted Ezra and wanted to show that he had his back, just as the Southerner had shown that he was willing to protect him.

Chris, Buck, Josiah and Nathan were sitting around the table in the Saloon's private room with coffee, waiting on Ezra in various states of impatience. Buck was curiously lifting the cloth covering the table and chortled when his suspicions that it was actually a poker table were confirmed. He'd heard rumours of high stake poker games being played by wizards wanting to experience an illicit thrill of playing a Muggle game for money and now he knew it to be true.

"He set the time, but he's the one who's late," complained Nathan, scowling at his wrist watch. Unable to talk his colleagues out of this meeting, he was a bundle of nerves after spending the night and morning imagining all the different traps the southerner could have set for them. Tutting, he started drumming his long fingers on the tabletop and eyed his cup of coffee suspiciously.

"On the contrary, Auror Jackson, I am precisely on time whereas your watch is running fast," argued Ezra as he swept into the room wearing fashionably tailored, forest green wizard's robes. Scanning the room automatically, he scowled into the shadows of one of the back corners just as the falcon shrieked and snapped its beak in the same direction.

All four of the seated men jumped at the sudden cry of the bird on Standish's shoulder, their hands flying under their robes to clutch their wands.

"Gentlemen, it appears that either you have intentionally brought an uninvited guest with you, or someone separate to your number has rudely invited themselves to this gathering," drawled Ezra, frowning at the bug on the wall near the window.

"Only the four of us entered the room, Standish," declared Chris, glaring at the Southerner and then the bird, both of whom kept their eyes on a fixed spot over his head. Skin crawling, he slowly turned to study the far wall too.

"In that case, since I know that Ms Recillos keeps her premises spotlessly clean and vermin free, the bug lurking high on the far wall in an interloper," announced Ezra, drawing his wand and pointing it at the insect. "I'd suggest you reveal your true form immediately or I will force you to do so."

The cockroach seemed to fall off the wall, transfiguring into a young man with long, untidy dark hair under a crumpled wizard's hat and a determined look on his face.

"Ezra P. Standish, I am arresting you on the charge of harbouring a known fugitive. Vin Tanner, I'm arresting you on suspicion of the murder of Jess Kincaid and for jail break."

"Kid, what the hell are you on about? Vin Tanner ain't here," yelled Buck, standing up and smacking the boy on the head, knocking his stupid hat from his head. Chris scowled at the young man and clutched his mug of coffee with white knuckled intensity. Nathan and Josiah remained seated too, unsure of what was happening but willing to follow the lead of Chris and Buck. Josiah picked up the crumpled hat and stared at it curiously, wondering if it was supposed to look like that or whether it had met with an accident. Also, whether the boy's brain had been under the hat when the accident occurred.

Frowning at Buck, JD nearly dropped his wand as he tried to evade the older man's attempt at getting him in a headlock and trying to retrieve his hat from Josiah. "He is too! He's right there on Standish's shoulder!"

"Tanner's registered form is a coyote, Junior Auror Dunne, which you'd know if you'd done your homework," reprimanded Chris sternly, pushing the fact that he'd seen Tanner turn into a mink to the back of his mind, "What are you doing here, anyway? Arbitrator Travis ordered you back to Boston."

"Tanner can turn into a falcon and a mink. I was in town visiting a friend and saw him do it right downstairs in the Saloon when Yates first saw him," charged JD hotly, ignoring the second part of Chris' comments. "And Standish was the owl that carried him off up to a cabin he built up in the mountains."

The air crackled ominously, raising the hairs on everyone's bodies. All eyes turned to Ezra, who was suddenly looking like the extremely dangerous and powerful wizard he actually was, his green eyes snapping with magical energy. The falcon on his shoulder spread its wings, shrieking loudly before snapping its beak as its blue eyes glared at the Junior Auror. JD gulped, finally realising the peril he was in, and his hand flashed towards his wand. Chris and Nathan stood, the former's wand appearing in his hand with a supernatural speed even for a wizard. Josiah simply placed his wand on the table before leaning back in his chair, taking another sip of the superb brew he'd been supplied with and wishing he had something to eat.

Everyone's wand sailed over to be snatched from the air by Ezra's left hand; his right held his own wand unwaveringly pointed at the men before him. Nathan crossed his arms against his chest, glaring at the Southerner and feeling justified in his own convictions of the Southerner's corruption. Buck and Chris watched Ezra warily, reluctantly impressed at his command of nonverbal spells. Josiah just chuckled as he slouched in his chair, sipping on his coffee and settling to watch the show.

"This is what is going to happen, gentlemen – and I use that term very loosely and in some cases quite erroneously," commanded Ezra in his silky drawl, angry at the boy's presumption and interference, "We are all going to sit down like civilised beings and discuss matters. No-one will be arresting anyone at any point. If they try, they'd better be prepared for some very unpleasant and irrevocable consequences. Is that clear?"

Hopping off Ezra's shoulder, Vin transformed and stood next to his friend with his wand out and pointed at the others, glancing sideways at his friend he asked, "Ya sure 'bout this, Ez?"

"Yes Vin, it will be fine. All the men present, aside from … Junior Auror Dunne, was it?... is known to me and they are all equitable men. They'll give you a fair hearing," reassured the older wizard, seeing four of the five men under his wand relax a little at his words. Sheathing his own wand, he tossed Chris, Buck, Nathan and Josiah their wands and received a small nod of thanks in return. An uneasy truce had been declared.

Scowling, JD demanded, "What about my wand, Standish?"

"Son, first of all, it's Mr Standish to you. Show a little respect for others and you may actually see some returned. Secondly, I don't know you, nor have I heard anything about you. What I've seen of you doesn't inspire me to extend you any trust at all, so I'll be keeping a hold of your wand until such time as you can show that you have some control over your actions," replied Ezra evenly, hiding the impatience and disgruntlement he felt at the presumptuous pup's attitude. He knew that the boy was overcompensating to try and impress all the older and more experienced Aurors, but he wouldn't take rudeness from anyone. "Now why don't we all take a seat and partake of the delicious refreshments that Ms Recillos has been kind enough to supply? Good decisions are rarely made on empty stomachs."

Josiah was already seated, so Nathan resumed his seat next to him. Buck and Chris had been sitting opposite them, facing the door, and moved to retake their preferred spots. Vin sat next to Chris with a quick nod, after giving him a searching look and apparently finding something to satisfy in the steely look that was returned. Ezra stood behind the vacant chair between Josiah and Vin, waiting on JD to take the seat the southerner had graciously magicked to sit between Buck and Nathan, along with an extra place setting. He had only been expecting four guests after all.

Slowly and sulkily, JD did so and sat there brooding. This was not turning out the way he'd planned. He'd had this great idea to track down and capture Vin Tanner before turning him in to prove his worth as an auror to both Travis and Larabee, resulting in them begging him to be on the new A.T.F. team. Now, this fancy dressed, rich guy had taken his wand and treated him like a child, he'd never get on the team. Looking up when he felt the man next to him nudge his shoulder, he rolled his eyes when faced with Buck Wilmington's exaggerated pout. Great, now he was being mocked by the class clown.

Once everyone had settled, Ezra tapped the table with his wands and the platters in the middle of the table filled with a veritable cornucopia of delectable Mexican foods, filling the air with the scent of delicately spiced meats. Chicken enchiladas, spicy beef burritos, a tureen of chicken tortilla soup, corn and black bean quesadillas, sizzling steak fajitas and Baja fish tacos were complemented by crisp tortilla chips, guacamole, sour cream and tangy salsa fresca. Layered cornbread was eagerly snatched up by everyone, although Chris snatched the bowl of refried beans out of Buck's hands with a stern shake of his head. Everyone, even JD, smiled at the look of pure innocence on the gregarious wizard's face when denied that particular dish.

Once they had all eaten to repletion, although Vin was still munching on the leftovers of the chips, guacamole, cream and salsa, Ezra tapped the table again and all the dishes – except Vin's zealously guarded leftovers – disappeared back to the kitchen. Mugs full of fresh, hot, strong coffee appeared much to Chris, Vin and Josiah's satisfaction, with jugs of juice and water for those less enamoured with the jitter inducing brew.

"I believe now would be an excellent time for me to take the floor," announced Ezra, gazing around at the gathered wizards. They'd eaten in almost silence, only broken by requests for things to be passed. As everyone looked back at him expectantly, he launched into the history of Vin's run in with Eli Joe, detailing all the glaring discrepancies in the Auror's reports.

Scowling into his coffee, Chris listened with growing dismay to the set up that had been perpetrated against Tanner by someone who had taken the same oath to uphold the law that he had. Clenching his jaw, he reflected on what he knew of Yates and realised that none of it was exactly good. As much as his distant cousin from the south annoyed the living hell out of him, Chris snorted when he realised that he trusted the green eyed wizard more than Yates. When Ezra finished his report, Chris looked up to find almost everyone at the table looking at him expectantly. Feeling somewhat defensive, he snarled, "What?"

Chuckling at the obtuseness Larabee was showing, Ezra exchanged an amused look with Buck and decided to point out the obvious, "Auror Larabee, as head of this motley group of law enforcers, I believe the others are waiting for your input on my findings."

Frowning mightily, Chris replied, "Then why are you, Tanner and Dunne staring at me? None of you are on my team."

Ignoring the almost comical and childish glare thrown his way by Dunne, as though it was his fault the little twit wasn't on Larabees team, Ezra winked at Vin who was blushing and turned his eyes back to the green eyes that packed a much more effective glare. "Your opinion has a lot of bearing on Vin's fate, which guarantees you both his and my attention. Junior Auror Dunne is simply showing natural curiosity, I suspect. So, are you going to impart your words of wisdom, or do you plan to keep us in suspense?"

Realising his glare had no effect on Standish and was only making his own head hurt, Chris sighed gustily and slumped back in his chair. Running a hand through his unruly blond locks, he growled, "Tanner didn't do himself any favours by running, but I got to admit that the evidence you've presented leads me to believe that he's been framed for Kincaid's murder by this Eli Joe character."

Ezra's smile blinded the others at the table, but it was shadowed by the power of the smile on the face of the Texan.

Josiah couldn't help smiling when he saw those grins, realising with a jolt that the two men weren't all that much older than the Dunne boy. Glancing at Nathan, he chuckled when he saw the conflicting emotions on the medic's face. His friend seemed pleased that Tanner was innocent, yet disgruntled that it had been Standish who was the voice of reason and justice. Next to Nathan, Dunne was sulking with his arms crossed over his chest, which prompted another deep, rolling chuckle from the oldest one at the table. Buck was grinning just as wide as Vin, but then in the short time he'd known the man, Josiah had noted that happy was the moustached man's default mood. Lastly, he looked at his dour, sullen leader and paused…

Chris Larabee was shaking his head ruefully and smiling. Would wonders never cease?

TBC


	13. Chapter 13

**Thanks go to Lokemele for pointing out that Pensieve memories, or those procured by Veritaserum, could be discounted due to legilimency. It had occurred to me too, which is why I sort of stalled a bit. Trying to work out how to clear Vin. Sigh.**

"So how are we going to prove that Tanner is innocent? The Arbitrators aren't going to take Standish's word for it, like we apparently are," queried Nathan, huffing when his friend glared at him. "What? You may like him, but I don't."

"Nathan, you have no evidence that Brother Ezra is guilty of anything pernicious," rumbled Josiah warningly, upset that his friend persisted in showing his prejudice so blatantly.

"I don't have any evidence that he's innocent either, 'Siah. I can only go by my gut reaction and my gut reaction says he's a sneaky, arrogant, dark wizard, who thinks his family and his money will protect him from the law," protested Nathan stubbornly, pushing his glass of juice away and recrossing his arms across his chest defensively. "And you just stay out of my mind too, Standish. We know how you got such good results with the muggle police. Not hard when you just go in and watch how the crime was committed."

Rolling his eyes, Ezra smirked at the other wizard's low opinion of him. It wasn't anything he hadn't heard before.

Vin wasn't so complacent, however, and sprang up to point his finger at a suddenly alarmed Nathan, growling menacingly, "Yer wrong! Ya don't know Ez, so ya got no right ta judge him. He's a good friend n' .. 'n he's my brother. At least he don't judge folk based on hearsay 'n rumours 'n 'family'. Seems ter me that the only sneaky one at this here table is Dunne n' the only arrogant one is y'all. Maybe ya wanna stop chucking rocks from ya glass house afore ya find yaself duckin' shards!"

Chris glanced around the table, after Vin subsided and threw himself back into his chair to sit glaring at Nathan, and chuckled at the slack jawed response to the formerly quiet Texan's tirade. Seemed that the man had a temper that was quite formidable when triggered and his trigger seemed to be people he considered family being attacked. Gazing thoughtfully at Vin, Chris wondered at this newly discovered similarity between the bounty hunter and himself. Switching his gaze to his distant cousin, a low chuckle broke through as he noted the slightly misty eyed look of fondness that Ezra was directing towards Vin. It seemed that the feeling of kinship was a mutual one between the two younger men.

JD bristled at being accused of being sneaky. He was only doing his job, dammit. Why wasn't anyone willing to recognise that and applaud his efforts? After all, he'd been in the room with four full Aurors and not one of them realised he was there. The little he'd managed to consume at lunch burned in his belly as his anger and resentment caused indigestion.

Buck snapped his mouth shut at Larabee's chuckle and looked around at the others, his gaze catching on the still sulking youth next to him. Taking pity on the boy, he poked the lad and said, "You were pretty sneaky there, kid. It's not just anyone who could have snuck in here unnoticed by old eagle-eyes Larabee."

Revising his opinion of the buffoon and sensing a possible ally, JD sat a little straighter and stated what he considered to be the obvious. "I was just doing my job, not that any of you seem to care or are interesting in the fact that we should be arresting Tanner and Standish. They'll receive a fair trial and if they're as innocent as they claim to be then they'll be released. Standish should definitely be arrested because Tanner is a wanted man, innocent or not, and he's sheltering him which is a serious offense."

Snarling, Larabee turned on the kid. "What's the point of arresting them? Despite what you say, they've done nothing wrong. Tanner's been set up, who knows why and who's to say what sort of reach they people who set him up have. Even if they don't organise for him to be ill-treated in prison, how do you think the men will treat him once they find out that he's a bounty hunter? Especially since there'd be a lot of men in there who'd been captured by him in the first place. No matter how tough he is, he'd be dead in a week. As for Standish… he's just helping a friend. That sort of loyalty shouldn't be punished. Besides, if they were the murdering scum you think they are, then you'd be dead right now, kid. Along with the rest of us, probably, and all thanks to you going all John Wayne and thinking you could bring in two powerful wizards on your own. Or have you forgotten about that? Or did you just not care who died in your efforts to prove yourself?"

Paling a little, JD's quick mind redirected itself and he realised that instead of calling him down, Standish could have just hit him with a killing curse. Gulping, he shook his head mutely.

With a look of disgust, Larabee snarled, "Go back to Boston, kid. I've got no time for cowboys on my team."

Seeing the boy's dejection at Chris' brutal dressing down, Buck's protective instincts kicked in and he protested, "Aw, c'mon, Chris. Kid just needs some experience and someone to show him how the real world works. Who better than us? And ya've got to admit that it was pretty good that he got past us all. You know that none of us can transfigure into anything so small and it might come in handy having someone who can."

Hit by the large, pleading, hopeful cobalt blue eyes of his friend, as well as the doleful and even larger and more hopeful eyes of the kid, Chris felt trapped. Glancing at his profiler and medic, he saw looks of amused tolerance on their faces which didn't help him in the least. It appeared neither of them were adverse to having the over eager pup on the team. Throwing up his hands, he gave in with bad grace, saying, "IF Travis okays it, he can come in as a Junior Auror but no field work until he qualifies as a full Auror.. IF Travis approves it. And IF you mentor him and keep him away from me. That's the deal, Buck!"

"Sure, old dog. No problem," agreed Buck congenially, turning to grin at the kid who suddenly looked like he may just start to wriggle and wag his tail like an over excited puppy. Clapping a large hand to the boy's shoulder, he asked, "So, can you change yourself into anything but a cockroach, kid?"

"Oh yeah, I can transfigure into a raccoon, cockroach and a mouse. I've been learning how to transfigure into a wolf too, but it still takes me a bit longer and I come out more of a pup than an adult wolf, no matter how hard I concentrate, which is real annoying…"

"Breathe kid," chuckled Buck. "Ya should fit into our pack quite well. Old dog, Josiah and me all transfigure into wolves too. Nate there is a black panther, so he'll keep up alright if we're hunting. I read that Josiah can turn into a grizzly too, that right, 'Siah?"

"Yes, brother, I've always been fascinated by the mighty Ursus arctos horribilis, orgrizzly bear, and my first form in Transfiguration classes was as a grizzly," rumbled the profiler, happily recalling camping trips where he'd transfigured and spent some fun times foraging for berries and fishing for trout and salmon. "I only learned the wolf form in the past decade or so, as the grizzly tends to be somewhat intimidating sometimes. Also, they're fast but they're not really built for the long chases, more of a sprint type animal."

"It's unusual for someone to learn more than their initial form," acknowledged Buck easily, before turning his curious gaze to the two most reticent wizards at the table. "Your registered form is a coyote, Vin, and yours is a snow leopard, ain't it, Ez? But JD here says he's seen you turn into a mink and a falcon, Vin, and you an owl. How come y'all ain't registered them?"

Giving an elegant one shouldered shrug, Ezra casually brushed at his sleeve and drawled, "The owl is a … recent development and I've yet to get around to completing the paperwork. I sometimes like to forego conventional means of transport and gain exercise by seeking the skies. It seemed the prudent shape to take, given my nocturnal proclivities."

"Paperwork ain't my strong suit," shrugged Vin nonchalantly when the attention turned his way.

Grinding his teeth with frustration, Nathan spat, "This is all fascinating, but my original question ain't been answered. How we going to prove Tanner's innocence?"

"Waaaall, I planned on catching Eli Joe and forcing him to take some Veritaserum, then recording the confession…"

"Won't work. Especially now you've been associating with a known Legilimens. Arbitrator could argue that the true memory of any witness was obliterated and the false one implanted by Standish," argued Nathan, sniffing at Standish derisively.

"Yeah, but we'd have his wand and we could use Prior Incantato to prove that he'd used the killing curse...," argued Vin, a little desperately. Nathan had just shot down his defense plans without any regard to how it would affect him.

Ezra shook his head sadly and reached out to put his hand on Vin's shoulder comfortingly. Damned sanctimonious Auror had no right to pull the rug out from under Vin that way. Turning a scowl worthy of Larabee on Nathan, he waited for the other man to make amends.

Seeming to finally pick up that he was hurting the Texan, Nathan was a little more gentle when he replied, "Eli Joe could argue that his wand had been used by someone else. Possibly even you. There's no way to know who was holding the wand when the spell was cast."

Letting his chin fall to his chest, Vin hid his disappointment behind the waves of hair that fell forward, leaning into Ezra's side.

Moving his arm into a more secure side-on hug, Ezra intensified his glare at Nathan for his unintentially cruel remarks.

Lighting a cheroot and leaning back in his chair, Chris felt an unaccountable need to offer hope to the young Texan. "Travis is a fair man. Reckon if we got him here and laid it all out before him, he'd be able to offer some way to clear you."

Peering at Larabee through his hair, Vin tried to gauge whether he could trust the older man. Ezra seemed to think so and the southerner was generally as distrustful as himself. Cautiously, he nodded to signal his agreement.

Nodding back, Chris took a deep breath and asked, "What are your plans now, Standish? Heard you'd quit the muggle police."

"News certainly travels fast, Mr Larabee," drawled Ezra, eying the older man apprehensively. "Why do you ask?"

Casually inspecting the tip of his cheroot, Chris replied, "I'm heading up a team for the new Auror Tactical Force and we need a chameleon. From what I've heard on the family grapevine that might just be a role you're born to play."

Narrowing suddenly suspicious green eyes at the taller man, Ezra removed his arm from around Vin and leaned towards Larabee. "Why on Earth would I want to join another law enforcement agency, given my last less than auspicious attempt. Especially if it meant subjugating myself to you and working with the likes of Jackson. Just what have you heard? And from what source? You realise that our great-aunt, Arabella, is widely considered to have long been estranged from her sanity. She's the only common family we share. I can't imagine any of the pristine Larabees consorting with any of the rotten branches dangling from my family tree. Arabella was always the odd one out amongst the Standishes. Her brother thought she was a throw back to the Ravenclaw line."

"Something that I'm sure you don't want to come to the knowledge of the Ministry," said Chris, tapping the ash from his cheroot into his empty coffee mug. Darting a sly look from the corner of his eyes, he smirked at Ezra, believing he had the upper hand.

"I refuse to be blackmailed, Mr Larabee. If you are referring to what I think you're referring to, then I would come clean before I would let you use it against me. Frankly, I thought you were a more honorable man than that," snarled Ezra, gathering his robes as though to leave.

Sensing something was amiss, the others at the table looked at each other nervously.

Chris and Ezra glared at each other, neither willing to concede defeat in the battle of wills. Finally Chris laughed and said, "Damn Ez, you're just as stubborn as me, I'm too old for this shit. If you want the job, it's yours. Once we get Vin here cleared, there's a position for a long distance hit wizard for him too. My research shows that you're a hell of a shot, Tanner."

Raising his eyebrow and smirking at Nathan's horrified expression, Ezra said, "I'll think about it. But my first priority is proving Vin's innocence. I'm sure you understand."

"Sure, Ez," agreed Chris, dropping the butt into the mug and hearing it fizzle out in the cold coffee at the bottom. "I'll get Travis out here as soon as I can, but his family had a bereavement recently, so I'm not sure when it will be."

Nodding, Ezra stood and declared, "I know a lot of folk in low places, as I'm sure none of you are surprised to hear, and I've heard rumours that Eli Joe and a number of his cronies are in Denver at the moment. They also tell me that the Denver chapter of the Death Eaters has reformed and I doubt that the two factors are unrelated. It is my plan to have Eli Joe and as many of his minions under lock and key as I can by the time you get Travis here. I have an Uncle who is an Auror of many years experience in England and I was hoping to engage his help with the procurement of a confession that would satisfy a court of law."

"If you need any help, hoss, just give me a call," offered Buck jovially. "The only thing I like better than the ladies is a good fight."

Grinning, Ezra retorted, "I am aware of that Mr Wilmington, I've seen the state of the Saloon on the many occasions that your solicitation of the wrong 'lady' has lead to the destruction of Senorita Recillos' place of business. It may be one of the many reasons why she is so easily able to withstand your questionable charms."

Josiah roared with laughter, whilst Vin, Chris and Nathan all smiled. JD just looked puzzled.

"Hey now, that ain't right! Miss Inez is just playing hard to get," protested Buck, his moustache twitching with suppressed mirth. Damn, it was going to be fun having Standish around. That was two smiles in a day from Larabee. Damned rebel weasel was like pepperup potion for the old dog. Buck gave up and let his grin out.

TBC


	14. Chapter 14

**Sensitive issues contained in this chapter. Loss of unborn child. If this is upsetting to you, please skip.**

Vin paused his systematic currying of Ezra's pet donkey, Daphne, to watch as Ezra gave an elaborate, low bow to the hippogriff that had chosen to share Daphne's barn and Ezra's affection. Grinning as the regal animal returned Ezra's bow, he wondered at the southerner's ability with animals. Getting a sturdy nudge from Daphne to remind him of his duties, he returned to his grooming as he asked, "How ya gonna clear my name, Ez? What Jackson says makes sense, now I think on it. Cain't see Eli Joe confessing voluntarily neither."

Scratching Orlando's neck thoughtfully, Ezra drawled, "Uncle Alastor says that he cannot be here at this time, due to the uprisings of the Deatheaters in Britain and his duties there. But he suggested we set a trap for Eli Joe. Tell me, what led up to him setting you up? Why were you chasing him?"

Frowning, Vin put the curry brush away and moved over to sit on a bale of hay outside Daphne's stall. "I wanted a bounty that would pay well and would take me out of town…"

"Why did you need to get out of town?"

Flushing a deep red, Vin plucked fretfully at the loose hay and muttered, "Don't matter none."

Sensing something was up, Ezra moved to crouch in front of Vin, trying to see his face behind the veil of hair. "Vin? It could be important…"

Exploding upwards, Vin knocked Ezra back onto his butt and caused Orlando to shriek and rear angrily. Unaware, he started pacing and yelled, "I's trying ta git away from a love gone bad! Okay? Woman who said her husband beat her; treated her mean and wanted to kill her, came inta my office and paid me ta protect her. Only after a few nights a talkin' real late, she starts ta asking me ta hold her 'til she goes ter sleep. Says she can't sleep otherwise, but I makes her feel safe. I ain't never been real popular with women. I's a mite shy 'round 'em, truth be told. They's bafflin' ter me, tha way they carry on, wantin' a man ta talk on feelin's and such, then wantin' ta change ya even though ya's good enough fer 'em ta start with. But Charlotte seemed ta like me 'n then after a couple 'o nights of just holdin'… she … we… Aw hell!"

Sprawled on the floor of the barn, Ezra stared at his distraught friend in open-mouthed astonishment. He'd never seen the man so animated. Gathering his wits, when Vin wound down, he drew his legs up to sit tailor style on the floor and prompted, "You and Charlotte became.. intimate?"

Running a hand through his hair before letting the hand fall to his side, Vin looked at Ezra with despairing eyes and nodded. "Intimate. Yeah, guess that's a word fer it. Charlotte was wild in bed. I'd been with a woman before, but ain't never knew it could be like that, Ez. The things that woman did ter me. Guess I just plumb lost ma mind. Anyway, I fell hard fer her but weren't long 'fore she … well, I guess she got tired o' being with the help. Did I tell ya her husband was rich? Not as rich as y'all, but richer'n some no-hoping bounty hunter. She just up n' left one day when I's out on a grocery run. Left a cheque and a note saying thanks but she was going ta give her husband another chance. Never did cash that cheque."

Heart hurting for his friend, Ezra asked tentatively, "How long were you lovers?"

"'Bout a month," whispered Vin morosely, sinking down to sit on the bale again. "Weren't long really. Dunno why I'm carryin' on like this…"

"The heart wants, what the heart wants, Vin," murmured Ezra absently, patting his friend's jean clad knee. "I have a couple of somewhat delicate questions to put to you, but I don't want to offend you."

"Just ask, Ez," said Vin, exhaustion dripping from his voice.

"You mentioned she was uninhibited in the bedroom… well, there's really no other way to say this… Did you use protection?"

Vin shook his head. "She said she's on tha pill 'n couldn't use condoms 'cos she's allergic ter tha stuff on 'em. Said she'd only been with her husband so she's clean 'n that she knew I was too. Why?"

Pinching his nose as his suspicions were seemingly confirmed, Ezra held up a hand and asked urgently, "You say she was with you a month. Did she run her courses in that time?"

"How tha hell would I know? She weren't for the last three weeks anyway, 'cos we's going at it pretty regular and I'da noticed then. What are ya thinkin', Ez?"

Fishing his wand from his pocket and standing, Ezra motioned for Vin to follow him as he strode over to the water trough in Daphne's stall. Waving his wand over the water, he asked, "Did you ever see the husband? And what was his name?"

"No and Richmond. Will Richmond. Why? Ez, what are ya thinkin'?"

An image wavered in the trough of a somewhat pretty brunette hanging on the arm of a tall man with blue eyes similar to Vin's.

"That's her. That's Charlotte. She didn't mention having kids though. I'd never have got in tha middle iffun there's kids involved," declared Vin, pointing at the woman who was most definitely pregnant.

"That is Will Richmond of Richmond Haulage, Vin. He's a very rich man and from all appearances, given the information I have here, your Charlotte is a gold digger. Generally speaking, rich men desire heirs. Male heirs. If their wives do not provide them with male heirs, they tend to rid themselves of the wife and marry another, hopefully more fertile, woman. Sometimes, if they have a string of unsuccessful pairings, which cost them money in alimony and divorce lawyers fees, they even write it into the prenuptial agreement. Since Richmond is now on his third wife in five years, I would say chances are good that he is a) infertile, and b) unwilling to admit it, blaming the lack of success on his wives. A common enough reaction, I assure you. Charlotte appears to be more cunning than her predecessors and has outsourced for an heir. If her child is born with your eyes, it will be all the better for her, given the similarity to her husband's eyes."

Vin had gone first white, then red, then white again during Ezra's discourse. Fists clenched, he heaved in a breath and growled, "Ya saying that she used me as a stud? That the baby in her belly's probably mine? That what ya sayin'?"

Making a tiny sad noise, Ezra flipped through another 'page' of the information in the water trough. "She didn't carry the child to term, Vin, I'm sorry. I'm looking at her medical records and it shows her admission for the premature birth of a daughter. The child was too early and appeared to have severe birth defects. The doctors couldn't save her. I'm sorry."

"What about Charlotte? She okay?"

"No, she hemorrhaged and died on the operating table," read Ezra, reaching out to hold on to the trembling arm of the shaken young man beside him.

Shaking his head slowly, bewildered by the news that he was a father and then having that snatched away from him, Vin suddenly ran for the door. Ezra watched him go, but gave him some space, scanning the rest of the information that he'd summoned. It was a fair bet that Richmond knew that the child wasn't his if he read the medical report. The blood types didn't match up. Sighing, he figured that Eli Joe may have been paid by Richmond to lure Vin along and then frame him in retaliation. As sad as that was, it did give him a way to get Eli Joe to show himself. At least he knew that Richmond wasn't a Deatheater, since he and his wife had both been muggles.

Terminating his scrying spell, he started slowly from the barn, ruminating on his plan. Distracted by the sounds of retching, he altered course and found Vin losing his stomach contents into his gardenias. Walking up behind his friend, he rubbed circles on the straining back and waited for the dry heaves to end.

"Done?"

Spitting one last time, Vin nodded and straightened up. Tears trailed down his face from the effort of vomiting, but he made no effort to wipe them away. Letting Ezra guide him, he plodded along as he tried to reconcile the latest bad thing to befall him.

"Neldy?"

"Yes, Master Ezra?"

"Vin isn't feeling well, could you make some chicken and dumplings for dinner, please? And could you bring some hot, sweet tea into the living room, please?"

"Certainly, Master Ezra."

Taking Vin through to the great room, he gently guided his charge down onto the biggest sofa. Achacius watched attentively from his perch on the back of the other sofa. Kneeling, Ezra removed Vin's boots, placing them neatly under the coffee table. Standing, he took off Vin's coat and placed it over the arm of the nearby armchair. Then he sat next to the shivering man, after grabbing the afghan off the back of the sofa and wrapping it around Vin.

"Ez?"

"Yes, Vin."

"Ya reckon I'da been a good Pa?"

Fighting back the prickling tears, Ezra cleared his throat and said firmly, "You would have been the best Pa ever. What's more you WILL be the best Pa ever, when the time is right."

Nodding, Vin let the tears fall. Turning to Ez, he murmured, "It hurts, Ez."

Sucking in a breath at the pain in the large, tear washed, sky blue eyes, Ezra reached out and hauled Vin into his arms in a huge hug. When the Texan burrowed his face into his shoulder, Ezra tightened his hold further and mumbled, "I know, Vin. I know. I'm sorry."

TBC


	15. Chapter 15

Chris jolted out of a light doze at the sound of tapping to his window. Buck had taken JD back to his loft in Denver, since the kid was currently living in a run down hotel that was all he could afford, given that his trip here was unsanctioned. Nathan had gone home to his wife and Josiah had returned to his rambling old fixer-upper. Feeling strangely bereft, Chris had gone back to his ranch and looked around for the first time in years. Making some notes on repairs that needed doing as well as a note to corral Buck into helping him do them, Chris had fed his horses, the barn cat and his dog, then made himself a sandwich. Washing the sandwich down with a beer, he'd watched a baseball game he'd taped until dropping off.

Yawning and stretching, he made his way over to the window, scratching under his arm as he went. There sat a regal looking spectacled owl, which politely lifted its leg so he could retrieve the letter held in the clenched talon. Fumbling in the drawer of the table beside the window, he finally retrieved a very old, dried out owl treat. It had been many years since he'd gotten any owl post at the ranch so his supplies were sparse. The owl looked at the treat and then seemed to give him a look of disgust that was vaguely familiar, before it politely and gently took the treat and flew off without eating it.

Unrolling the note, he jumped back as a poker chip fell out and rolled across the floor to settle under his couch. Scanning through the note, he snorted as he worked out who the owl reminded him of… Standish. The amusement faded though as he scanned through the note. Apparently something new had come up with Tanner and Ezra was asking to meet him. But only him. The poker chip had been charmed to be a port key that would usher him to a secure location. Wondering vaguely if he was about to view Standish's mysterious cabin in the hills, that no-one outside Nettie Wells and Inez Recillos had seen, he knelt down to peer under the couch. Reaching through the accumulated dust, food crumbs and dog hair, he finally located the chip. Hauling himself up on the couch, he sat with the chip in the palm of one hand and the letter in the other.

"What do you think, dog?"

Max raised his head and looked at him from his curled up position on the armchair. The German Shepherd's eyebrows hitched as his tried to work out what his master was asking of him.

"Yeeeeah. Guess I'd better go and find out what the problem is. Standish wouldn't summon me without good cause," muttered Chris, standing and checking his pocket for his new wand. Stomping his feet into his boots, he motioned at the dog to follow him to the outdoor kennel and yard where Max was kept when he wasn't home. Colorado still had its share of mountain lions and Chris didn't want to see his dog get eaten.

Touching his wand to the chip and muttering the incantation that activated the charm, he found himself standing on a wide, sweeping lawn looking down towards a lake. A lake that looked like it would be an excellent place to waste a day in a boat with a fishing pole and a cooler of beer.

"Mr Larabee, so kind of you to accept my invitation at this late hour," crooned a southern voice from behind him.

"You got fish in that lake?"

"I'm assuming there are, but I'm not really a fisherman unless it's angling. I use the lake for swimming and I find rowing on it to be very cathartic. Mainly, I just find it aesthetically soothing," replied Ezra, coming to stand shoulder to shoulder with the taller man. Gazing out over his property, he felt the peace fill him that he always found here.

Turning around, Chris let out a low whistle as the house come into view. Spying a barn out the back he queried, "Got horses?"

"No. I have a donkey called Daphne and the barn is used by a hippogriff who seems somewhat attached to Daphne and myself. I also have a Kneazle called Leonard, a catzle called Achacius and you've met my spectacled owl, Horatia. I have been toying with the idea of getting a dog, but find myself unable to settle on a breed," answered Ezra, surprised at how mellow the usually abrasive blond was this evening.

Nodding, Chris took a deep breath of the pine scented air. Slightly cleaner than the air on his ranch, as it was missing the smell of horse manure.

"Would you like to come in, or would you rather talk on the porch?"

"Where's Tanner?"

Ducking his head, Ezra rubbed his thumb over his lower lip before saying, "Vin has had some bad news and I thought it best to give him a calming draught and let him head up to bed. I asked him if he was willing to let me tell you of the latest developments and he seemed relieved that he wouldn't have to sit through it again. So here we are. Would you like a beverage of some sort before we commence? Tea, coffee, beer, scotch?"

"Coffee would be nice," agreed Chris, moving to sit on one of the rocking chairs. "It's too nice a night to be indoors, so let's stay on the porch."

Knowing that his guest was dying to see inside the house, but was trying to appear non-intrusive, Ezra smirked and sat on the other rocking chair.

Jumping a little when the tiny creature popped into being in front of him, Chris accepted the mug of fragrant coffee from her tray with a thank you. Waiting until she'd given Ezra his cup of tea and a short curtsy before popping back out, he blurted, "You have a house elf?"

"Obviously. I inherited Neldy and promptly freed her, as you could see from her rather stylish outfit, but she's elderly and didn't want to leave so I hired her," agreed Ezra, sipping his tea experimentally and then sat back when it was found to be satisfactory as always. He then launched into a detailed report of what happened to Vin.

Halfway through, Chris stood up and started pacing. At the conclusion, he slammed the palm of his hand into the railing around the porch and exclaimed, "Dammit! Poor damn kid!"

"Indeed."

"I gather you don't want anyone else to know about this," asked Chris, turning around to rest his butt on the railing and cross his arms.

"I don't think it's pertinent to the investigation for all and sundry to know what that despicable woman did to Vin, or the reasons behind it and the results of it. If Vin decides to reach out to anyone on your team at any point and wants to discuss it, then it will be his decision."

"Why are you telling me, then?"

"Because you are the leader of your team and as such you should be possessed of all the facts, pertinent or not, in order to make the best decisions for the team," replied Ezra, as though speaking to a simpleton.

"You know, I've worked with Buck for more than a decade and I still haven't been able to convince him of that fact," complained Chris, good-naturedly.

Rolling his eyes, Ezra stood and went to lean against the post at the top of the stairs. Looking out over the moonlit lake, he said, "I thought it would be prudent to send someone to interview Mr Richmond and get all the particulars of how he contacted Eli Joe. Then that contact method could be emulated in order to lure the miscreant to a known spot where he, and any of his brethren, could be apprehended prior to being brought to justice. If we could prove him to be associated with the Denver chapter of the Deatheaters, that would be all to the good for the case. Richmond is a muggle, so can't be brought before a Ministry Arbitrator, unless we then obliviate all memory of the event and the lead up to it. As much as it would hurt Vin personally for the truth to come out about the wife's infidelity, I believe that a sufficiently talented lawyer could spin it to make Vin out to be the victim – as he truly was. Since Kincaid and Eli Joe are both magical, obviously the Ministry has jurisdiction over the muggle agencies when it comes to a trial. What do you think?"

"I'll go see Arbitrator Travis in the morning and let him know, but I think your plan will work best. Since Richmond is a muggle, the way he contacts Eli Joe must be a muggle way…"

"Not necessarily. There are many magicals born into muggle families, or befriended by them. He may even have a witch or wizard working for him, who is the liaison between him and Eli Joe," interrupted Ezra, patiently working through the issue.

Nodding, Chris realised just why Ezra was so damned sought after by all the muggle alphabet agencies – he was the best. "You sure you won't join my team?"

A short laugh burst from Ezra as he gestured around himself grandly and asked, "Does it look like I am in need of gainful employment, Mr Larabee?"

"Just keep it in mind, Ez. Well, guess I'd better be getting home. This chip work in reverse?"

"Yes, it will get you home. In fact, it will also get you back here anytime you may feel the need, although if it's purely a social call I beg you to send an owl first. If you feel the need to test the lake for its fishability, please take Vin with you. He has expressed the same desire to … how did he put it? Oh yes, 'drown some worms'. I believe that you and Vin would enjoy each others' company immensely, Mr Larabee. I think that you and he hold an affinity for horses too, so you may want to invite him to you ranch for some riding," offered Ezra lazily. "I would appreciate your discretion with the use of that chip, however. I relish my privacy and because of such, if anyone other than you or Vin were to try and use that portkey… well, there are some nasty curses out there and one or more of them may just be attached to that portkey."

A brief grin slid across Chris' face. Ezra was trusting him with not only his home, but his closest friend. An absurd feeling of pride filled him. Taking his wand out, he prepared to trigger the portkey.

"Mr Larabee!"

Glancing up, he switched the chip to his wand hand and just managed to snatch the tin that the southerner tossed to him. Turning it so he could see the lid, he huffed out a laugh. Owl treats. Looking up he met the sparkling green eyes of the younger man and lifted an eyebrow.

"Horatia was most displeased with your offerings and made sure to show me how much by hawking up a particularly disgusting digestive pellet into my coffee upon her return from your ranch."

Nodding, Chris pocketed the tin and made a note to check anything he was given to eat or drink whilst at Standish's place for a while. Activating the chip, he saw Ezra lift two fingers to an imaginary hat brim in a farewell salute just before he dematerialised.

TBC


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read my ramblings. And big hugs to all those who have taken the extra time to post reviews too. I do love to read your thoughts on the story thus far.**

Chris stood scowling at the motley assortment of scum that were currently slouched in various positions around the two cells in front of him.

After a surprising meeting with Arbitrator Travis, where the older man had heartily approved of Chris' somewhat hesitant suggestion that he hire Standish and Tanner, should he be able to get them to agree. Travis had known of Standish already, complete with his tarnished reputation and stellar arrest and conviction rate. Telling Chris that he'd been hoping to bring the powerful wizard into the new Auror's Tactical Force, as soon as he heard that he'd resigned from the FBI, he offered to send an employment contract by owl post immediately. No sense if leaving the southerner in doubt and losing him to another Muggle alphabet agency. As to Tanner, Travis was horrified at the web of deceit surrounding the investigation of the Kincaid murder. Chris had left with not just the Arbitrator's approval to clear Tanner's name, but a command to find the rot in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Texas, and chop it out.

When told that Dunne had been offered a place on the team as an office or surveillance van based Junior Auror, Travis had thrown his head back and laughed like a loon. Wishing that he'd put money on it, he finally sobered and told the bemused blond in front of him that he'd had the young man's records transferred and spoken to his Boston superiors. Based on what he'd heard and read, he'd been pretty certain that the determined youngster would find a way past Larabee's attitude. Pushing a copy of the record over to Chris, he consoled him by telling him that the boy was considered a prodigy and that the Boston office was sorry to lose him. At this news, Chris had snorted and muttered something derogatory about the Boston officials' parentage.

Calling his team together in the conference room near their bullpen, Chris gave them an abbreviated version of what he'd been told by Ezra, telling them that Vin had been set up by a Muggle and that they needed to proceed with caution. Ignoring Jackson's protests, he told them that he planned on sending Ezra in to determine just how knowledgeable of the magical world Richmond was before they went any further.

As it turned out, Richmond had no knowledge of the magical world. He'd met Eli Joe in a bar, where he was drowning his sorrows on the betrayal of his wife and – more importantly to him – yet another failure to procure a male heir. With the malevolent wizard fanning the flames of his anger, Richmond had soon offered to pay to have Tanner set up for murder. It was important that the man lose what was most important to him and Eli Joe, who claimed to have heard all about the bounty hunter, said his good name was the most important thing in Tanner's world. The added bonus was the death of one of Richmond's major business rivals in Tascosa, Jess Kincaid, who owned a ranch there as well as being the head of his own haulage company.

Travis had arranged, at Ezra's request, to have one of his esteemed colleagues sit in on the session with Richmond. Arbitrator Mackenzie oversaw the careful removal of every memory that Richmond had of his third wife's betrayal, Vin Tanner, Eli Joe and his nefarious business dealings. Mackenzie then obliviated the man personally, before taking the memories to Travis directly, once again at Ezra's insistence. As Ezra told Larabee, he wanted the trial to be beyond reproach and he was more than aware of his own less than stellar reputation. Larabee had grimaced but agreed.

Using the Muggle phone number that Richmond had used to contact Eli Joe, they sent a text message requesting a meeting to discuss further business. Taking a swig of water from his hipflask, on the pretence that it contained polyjuice potion, Ezra used his natural metamorphagus abilities to change into a perfect replica of Will Richmond. Tanner smirked as the others dropped their jaws, unaware of this aspect of the plan. They'd assumed that Ezra would walk in as a third party or some such.

Larabee had reluctantly allowed Tanner to accompany them to the sting, but the antsy Texan was made to promise to stay in the van with JD. Seeing how his participation in the bust would compromise his defence, Tanner had agreed. At least he'd be able to see and hear things as they happened from the van, whereas he's have gone crazy waiting to hear what happened at home.

With consummate skill, Ezra had managed to extract a full and enthusiastic rendition of his murder of Jess Kincaid and how he'd managed to frame Tanner for it from Eli Joe. Once it was all out and Dunne had indicated over their ear pieces that it had all been recorded in full and glorious technicolour, Larabee had swept in to arrest Eli Joe whilst Ezra stood back and grinned through Will Richmond's face. Buck and Josiah had encountered two more thugs guarding the perimeter and promptly arrested them. Nathan threw a severing charm at the curtains, exposing two more thugs who were taken care of with a freezing charm.

Slapping handcuffs on their prisoners after searching them for weapons and removing their wands, Larabee and his team then tapped the charmed restraints with their wands and uttered the spell that activated the port key charm and sent the men straight into cells held for them. There were more than had been anticipated, but they'd survive a few hours in cramped conditions.

Emerging victorious, they joined JD and Vin outside the surveillance van for a brief celebration and much back slapping. Piling into the vehicle, they made their way to jail to complete the necessary paperwork, including a full statement from Vin. Arbitrator Travis had arranged with his fellow Arbitrators to expedite matters, with regard to the bounty on Vin's curly head, and all had agreed that given the circumstances he shouldn't be arrested. Instead, he was to be held in Larabee's custody until the outcome of Eli Joe Chavez's trial was known. Standish had bowed his head at this news, but then he wasn't an official member of the ATF or any other law enforcement agency, so he couldn't be given custody of his friend. Still, he was sure that Vin would enjoy staying with Larabee and his horses.

After all, Neldy had been dispatched to the ranch to clean the entire dwelling to her exacting standards and fill the larder with all of Vin's favourite meals.

Chris' scowl softened as he remembered the childlike glee that Vin had expressed upon meeting the horses. Buck boarded his grey with Larabee, so Pal took up one of the ten stalls. Another stall was taken up by his breeding stallion, Lazarus. He'd bought the stallion with the insurance money from his beloved wife, knowing that she'd supported him in his dream of making the ranch a working horse stud. A beautiful brood mare, Penelope, was in the stall farthest from his stud. Then he had his riding gelding, Zorro. Shaking his head sadly, he wondered again at why he kept the name his son had given the horse.

An elderly neighbour had asked Chris to take his two horses when infirmity meant him having to sell his place and move in with his daughter, closer to town and the hospital. The morning after they'd arrived, Chris had found the chestnut munching complacently on his wife's overgrown vegetable garden, whilst the blaze-faced black was found running around his back meadow. Trouble makers the pair of them and almost impossible to catch he'd found. Finally, he'd managed to get them both back into their stalls and realised that one or both of them knew how to unlatch the gates. The gates had been tied ever since, much as he hated the practice due to extra time it would take to release the animals should the barn ever catch fire.

So that was six of his stalls occupied. He thought that maybe Josiah, Nathan and JD may want to join them on rides so he should ask if they wanted to buy their own mounts, or if he should just buy three more. Tanner seemed to have bonded with the damned blaze-faced devil, Peso, which meant he couldn't send the ornery beast to the glue factory as he'd been tempted to do. Thinking on the nature of the chestnut gelding, he was pretty sure that Standish would suit him. Lord knew, it was a beautiful animal, but it had been old Jacob's wife's horse before she died, so Chaucer was spoiled rotten and used to a soft touch. Sounded perfect for Ez. Once he started breeding his horses in earnest, he may have to encourage Ezra to take on the care of Chaucer and Peso to free up two of his stalls.

Shaking himself out of his daydream, he glared at the smug face of Eli Joe. Yates was still on the loose, which annoyed the tall blond something fierce. Ezra had taken Josiah and gone on the hunt for the corrupt law man. Buck and JD were helping to keep Vin sane by tackling the long list of chores out at the ranch. Vin had prior experience, but it was all a learning experience for the boy from Boston. Judging by the long suffering tone to Vin's voice the night before, JD was overjoyed with the work and attacking it with his usual overabundance of enthusiasm. Chris was sure that Vin was longing for the solitude and peace of Ezra's house right about now.

Arriving home to an immaculate house and the delicious smell of roasting meat and vegetables had been a huge surprise that first night. Chris had been a bit worried about taking Vin into his home, knowing that the spare rooms were musty and covered in dust and cobwebs. Also, that his larder was bare although there was plenty of beer in the fridge. He'd planned on summoning a pizza, but then he'd found that Ezra had sent Neldy over. Vin had had his legs hugged by the tiny creature before she'd given them instructions on what food was there and how to reheat it, told them that the spare room was all set up and ready, then curtsied and popped back to take care of her 'Master Ezra'. Calling down thanks on the southerner's head, the pair had headed for the kitchen like starving dogs and dived into the pot roast that awaited them. The apple pie and cream that went after was divine.

That had been a week ago and now it was the day of Eli Joe Chavez's trial. The case was airtight according to the lawyers. Chris certainly hoped so.

TBC


	17. Chapter 17

**Sorry for the delay. Real life has a disconcerting way of infringing on my writing. I don't care for it. Grumble. This Wizengamot is pulled from my imagination, so it will have little bearing on the canon of the JK Rowling world. I confess that I struggled with this chapter and hope that it's okay. Having seen 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them', the boys should probably be referring to non-magical people as No-Mag's rather than Muggles, but I can't shake the habit. Sorry. Also, my American version of the British wizard prison, Azkaban, is Tartarus – picture a non-touristy Alcatraz with more pain and suffering.**

Vin sat tightly wedged between Chris and Ezra in the front row of the viewing gallery of Courtroom number one, nervously rubbing his clammy hands over his thighs. Clad in one of Ezra's plainest dress robes, he was more than relieved that the southerner had suggested that he wear his normal, comfortable clothes underneath. Already uptight, the tracker couldn't have stood being gussied up in one of Ez's fancy suits as well as the dress robes. Watching North America's Wizengamot file in, he gathered handfuls of the borrowed robe as his hands fisted anxiously, waiting for the fifty members who had been presiding over this trial to solemnly retake their seats after the deliberation.

Chris and Ezra exchanged concerned looks before Ezra placed his hand on Vin's tense forearm and Chris placed a firm hand on Vin's knee to quiet the nervous jiggling. Buck, JD, Josiah and Nathan sat in the seats behind the three in a show of support. Buck was practically sitting on JD, who was vibrating with the excitement of being at his first Wizengamot hearing as well as nerves over the decision.

A hush fell over the courtroom as a platform rose up, clanking and groaning from the holding cells, bringing the six accused up - each in their own ornate cage lined with sharpened arrows to prevent any excessive movements by the occupant - in the centre of the room. Stern, hard-faced Aurors moved to stand behind each man, wands at the ready. Eli Joe stared around him balefully, before his hate-filled eyes fixed on Vin. His thugs each stood stoically awaiting their fate, knowing that they were all but sealed given their previous convictions and offenses. Yates, who had finally been run to ground and apprehended by Ezra and Josiah in a filthy bar in London, stood dejectedly with his shoulders slumped and head hanging. It seemed that he was trying to create as much distance between himself and his cousin as possible, by trying to disappear in the tiny space he found himself in.

The stentorian voice of the Chief Warlock, Arbitrator Jubal Davenport-Reed, suddenly reverberated around the chamber as he announced his readiness to announce the verdicts. The Wizengamot had already heard from all the relevant people involved in the trial in the days preceding. Vin fidgeted as he remembered his own testimony and how he'd stammered and blushed, unaccustomed to speaking in front of so many folks and painfully shy about doing so. Yates had supporters in the room and they had hooted and jeered at the reticent tracker whilst he tried to tell his story, but glares from Chris and Ezra, and the demands of the Chief Warlock had quietened the hecklers.

Glancing at Ezra, Vin gratefully remembered how his southern brother had spoken eloquently and compellingly, convincing even the most sceptical in the room that it would have been impossible for the Texan wizard to murder Jess Kincaid and entirely plausible for Eli Joe. His calm, professional, earnest presentation of the facts, whilst shredding the flimsy case against Vin, had clearly shown without doubt the guilt of Eli Joe and the complicity of those standing beside murdering scum.

Yates had tried to draw doubt to the veracity of Ezra's testimony and sully Ezra's character, by pointing out how the southerner had been all but drummed out of the muggle F.B.I. for corruption, but Arbitrator Gwendolyn Bodsworth had spoken up to tell the court that all the muggle evidence against Ezra was circumstantial. Smiling at the mortified Standish, the matronly witch had explained that as the Head Arbitrator of the state of Georgia, she made it her job to monitor all magical persons in the state that worked in Muggle law. Looking around at her fellow Arbitrators, most of whom nodded back at her in agreement, she declared Ezra's character to be beyond reproach and his work exceptional given the restraints of operating within a Muggle's capacity.

The small smile that had softened Vin's anxiety at the memory of how red Ezra had gone by the end of Arbitrator Bodsworth's speech, disappeared as the tension in the atmosphere of the court room went up several notches. Arbitrator Davenport-Reed had reached the end of his summation and was ready to declare the verdicts reached.

JD muffled a nervous giggle in his already crushed hat, which was currently clutched in his hand. The deep, booming voice of the Arbitrator was a surreal contrast to the tiny, wizened man with wispy, white hair sprouting from head, eyebrows, ears and nose alike. Jubal Davenport-Reed, Head Arbitrator of the proud state of Tennessee and the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot of the United States of America, was truly the epitome of phenomenal cosmic powers… in an itty bitty living space. The image of the stern-faced Arbitrator as the blue-skinned genie from Disney's 'Aladdin' had JD red-faced and shaking as he chortled helplessly into his much abused hat. Buck quirked an eyebrow, his moustache twitching wildly with his own contained amusement, as he grasped the back of JD's neck and squeezed it in warning for the boy to control himself. Josiah and Nathan merely exchanged long suffering looks and returned their attention to the Chief Warlock.

Smirking when he heard JD's sniggering, Ezra once again marvelled at how much the Chief Warlock resembled his old Charms Professor from Hogwarts. However, Professor Flitwick hadn't possessed the Arbitrator's deep voice, instead speaking with the squeaking voice you'd expect from one of such diminutive stature. Fondly remembering learning the 'Wingardium Leviosa' spell, his face lit in a quickly repressed grin as he recalled a classmate 'accidentally' levitating the tiny professor high into the air before losing concentration and dropping him like a stone. It would appear that the charms master was used to such occurrences as he'd instantly conjured a large air mattress to fall on. Snapping to attention as the Chief Warlock paused in preparation for the final announcement; Ezra loosened his grip on Vin's forearm and slid his hand down to grip Vin's cool, clammy hand after shaking it to loosen its death grip on the dress robe.

Glaring at the prisoners, Chris waited with fierce joy to hear the guilty verdict he was sure would be handed down. How could the Wizengamot decide anything else given Standish's testimony? There were no loopholes for them to squirm out of, Standish had had an immediate and confident response for every defence the prisoners came up with, all the while painting Vin to be exactly what he was; an honest, decent, law-abiding citizen of the Magical world who had been framed. The green eyed wizard had oozed understated power and relaxed charm, which had proven an incredibly effective combination in the quest to open even the most tightly shut minds to the truth. Now more than ever, Chris was glad to have signed his capricious cousin onto his new A.T.F. team. A feeling of determination and renewed strength flowed through him as he stole a quick look of pride at his team members.

Unlike a Muggle trial, there had been no lawyers present at a Wizengamot. Each state voted in a Head Arbitrator, from the many standard Arbitrators who ruled over county trials, to oversee State Court trials. For Federal law trials, every state sent their Head Arbitrator and then they voted amongst themselves for a Chief Arbitrator by secret ballot. Once the trial started, the arresting Auror would outline the case against the suspect and then any witnesses, or anyone with evidence or an opinion relevant to the trial was entitled to speak and be questioned by any person present. The prisoner was entitled to nominate a speaker, usually someone with legal knowledge, but had the right to speak for themselves. Unless the accused was underage or mentally impaired, then a Magical Department of Justice approved speaker was appointed on their behalf. For the case at hand though, all had spoken for themselves, some thinking that they were smart enough to talk themselves out of trouble, others knowing there was no getting out of the charges.

All seven jumped and looked around, reaching for their wands, as the door to the chamber banged shut after the late admittance of Mary Travis, looking wan but determined with her notebook and quill in hand. Porcelain skin tinted pink in embarrassment at being tardy and garnering the unwanted attention of all present, Mary picked her way down to sit with the other members of the wizarding press world, nodding solemnly to those who murmured greetings and condolences.

"I think for the first time in many a year, the Wizengamot has reached a unanimous decision," stated Arbitrator Davenport-Reed, the frown he'd aimed at Mary falling from his face when he noticed that she wasn't looking at him. Noting the way every other person in the room hung on his every word, particularly the young wizard from Texas and his six friends, he drew himself up importantly and continued, "In the cases of Phylius Marchant, Bruno Salvatore, Montgomery Conner, and Vitaly Sokolov, you are all found guilty of the charges of assault and attempted murder held against you and sentenced to ten years each in Tartarus."

Pausing for the murmurs of agreement to abate as the cages of the condemned lowered into the ground with their resigned and despondent occupants; Jubal went on, "In the case of William Yates, you are found guilty of the charge of conspiracy to murder, perjury, and the perversion of justice and are thereby sentenced to fifteen years in Tartarus."

Yates blanched and lowered his head to his chest, tears of shock raining down his cheeks, as his cage sank into the dark recesses under the chamber. Eli Joe tossed back his lank hair and leered at the Chief Arbitrator, knowing that the sentence wouldn't be so lenient for him.

"Eli Joe Chavez, you are found guilty of all charges and will be put to death immediately for the murder of Jess Kincaid. No doubt Mr Kincaid was not the first person, muggle or otherwise, to have been dispatched by yourself in such a grisly manner, but we can only make you pay the ultimate price once," intoned Jubal gravely, his face lined and weary at the clearly unrepentant wizard before him. Turning to where the young Texan wizard sat, his lips lifted in a tiny smile as he said, "Devin James Tanner, whom you callously set up for the murder in your place, is hereby cleared of all charges and henceforth has his good name and all the freedoms associated with it returned to him. I declare this Wizengamot at an end having served justice to all."

Calamity broke out at this news with Buck, Josiah, Nathan and JD leaning forward to embrace Vin from behind, although they had to include Chris and Ezra who had turned to hug the overwhelmed young Texan. Others, who had supported Yates, hissed their displeasure sullenly as they slunk away through the now open doors. Smiles broke across the faces of most of the Wizengamot as they filed out, happy to see an innocent person cleared and celebrating with friends.

A flash startled the seven as one of the press took a photo of their celebration. Seeing the rest of the press start to move towards him made Vin twitch violently in his brother's arms.

Buck's jovial voice rang out as he broke up the group hug and proclaimed, "Well alrighty then! I say this deserves celebrating. Let's head to the Saloon and raise a drink to Vin's good name! I might even get me a congratulatory kiss from the sweet Inez."

"Why would she kiss you? It's not like you had anything to do with Vin getting cleared. Ezra did most of the work," protested JD, mischievously dancing out of range of one of Buck's famous head slaps, one hand holding his prized hat to his head.

"I helped!"

Shaking their heads, Nathan and Josiah followed at a more dignified pace when Buck chased JD from the chambers at a run, raucous laughter trailing behind them. Hauling a shell shocked Vin to his feet, Chris and Ezra guided the younger wizard outside, pausing only when Mary Travis approached them. Feeling Vin tense up, Ezra suggested, "Chris, why don't you take Vin and join the others? I'll catch up after I've spoken to a few people here."

"Thanks, Ez," murmured Vin gratefully, giving the green-eyed wizard's arm a quick squeeze before he lowered his head to hide his face with his long hair and let Chris guide him out towards the hallway.

"MR TANNER! MR TANNER! HOW HAS THE VERDICT MADE YOU FEEL? MR TANNER!"

Gulping, Vin instantly shrank away from the hordes of clamouring press as Chris slammed shut the door he'd just opened. Chris turned to him as he lost his hold on the young Texan, only to see a small brown furry critter looking back at him. Said furry critter then winked at him, before turning tail and scurrying back into the courtroom. Watching, Chris laughed as Vin scampered under Ezra's dress robes and disappeared. Judging but the surreptitious wriggling Ezra did, Vin was using his sharp little claws to climb up the other wizard's body. Sure enough, a small brown head with bright, beady eyes appeared from the back of Ezra's collar.

"Is… Is that a .. a mink?"

Sighing, Ezra nodding his head before plucking his errant friend from his robes and presenting him to Mary, who promptly went to stroke the adorable creature with one long delicate, ink stained finger, sighing, "Ohhh, isn't it soft."

"I've heard that you have a menagerie of animals, Mr Standish, but I didn't think you carried them around with you. Particularly into somewhere as important as a Wizengamot," remarked another journalist by the name of Helga Rowntree, who crowded close to Mary to peer at the animal, raising a rather less delicate hand to poke at Vin cautiously. A rather austere woman with a severe haircut, she hiked her right eyebrow up to look at Ezra, asking, "It won't bite will it?"

"No, Madame Rowntree, he is a perfect gentleman unless provoked beyond reason," purred Ezra, his honeyed tones bringing a softening to the sharp features of the journalist. "Now, I've given you a statement on behalf of Mr Tanner. I'm sure you'll all agree that after such a trying ordeal, he cannot be faulted for wanting some time away to heal. Mr Tanner is a naturally shy man also, so I doubt he'll ever be comfortable in the limelight. I'm sure that you will all do your utmost to respect his privacy."

With a stately bow, Ezra turned and swept from the courtroom with Larabee smirking behind him and a small brown mink riding in the crook of his arm. Said mink, burrowed his face into a fold of Ezra's robes as the two wizards strode through the crowds of people outside the courtroom. Taking an elevator to the ground floor, Ezra and Chris walked along in companionable silence.

Moving to stand side by side in one of the vast fireplaces in the Ministry of Justice's foyer, they shouted, "SALOON!"

TBC


	18. Chapter 18

**I go off on a wee tangent here, after talking to a Spanish friend of mine. Sorry.**

Leaning on the broad trunk of a tree and staring out across the lake on Ezra's property, Vin took a swig of his coffee and reflected on his life as he watched Ezra's friend, the hippogriff called Orlando, joyfully flying over the lake in search of fat, juicy fish. Achacius sprawled lazily along the length of his second favourite wizard's leg, rubbing his head on Vin's hip to remind him that he was being lax in the belly rubbing department. As the soothing motion resumed, the catzel rewarded Vin with a ground rumbling purr that vibrated right through the wizard and made the Texan chuckle lazily. Taking a deep breath of the fresh mountain air, Vin's face lit up with a bright grin as he recalled the previous evening.

"Where is he?"

Busy brushing bits of soot off his robes, Ezra hadn't noticed the people gathered in the Saloon until he was confronted by Nettie Wells. Knowing full well who the feisty old witch was after, Ezra playfully took her hand and kissed it before asking silkily, "Where is whom, Mistress Wells?"

Snatching her hand back and shaking a gnarled finger at one of her favourite young wizards, not that she'd admit it under pain of torture, Nettie growled, "Don't make me take my broom to you, fancy pants! You know who!"

A strange squeaky noise came from one of Ezra's sleeves. Nettie glared at the sleeve and then at the innocent face of Ezra Standish, before turning her attention back to the suspicious lump near the southerner's wrist. On closer inspection, she could just see a tiny black nose peeking out of the sleeve. Folding back the garment, she gently lifted the mischievous mink from where he was trying to turn and run back up Ezra's arm and turned him so she could look him in the eye.

"Oh no you don't, Devin James Tanner! We've all come here to celebrate the clearing of your good name, so you just come here and stop your shenanigans," demanded the old witch sternly yet affectionately, as she placed Vin at her feet after giving him the beady eyeball – said beady eyeball having been known to cause several young shoplifters to wet themselves from fear in the past.

Made of slightly sterner stuff, Vin merely huffed and changed back into his normal form. Copying Ezra, he leaned over and kissed the back of one of Nettie's hands after taking it into both of his. "Howdy, Miz Nettie. Yer shur lookin' lovely today."

Blushing mildly, Nettie reached up and dragged Vin down to clutch to her withered bosom for a hearty squeeze, whispering in his ear, "I'm so glad for you, son. Your Mama would be proud of you. Always would have been."

Chris, having decided that discretion was the better part of valour upon arrival, had edged around the confrontation between his cousin and Nettie to make his way over to the bar. Drinks of varying strengths had been set out and he snagged a rather nice bottle of Kentucky Bourbon – say what you like about the Muggles but they knew how to make good hooch, before snatching up seven shot glasses and making his way to a table towards the back of the establishment. Settling in, he poured out seven shots and placed one in front of each chair, picked up his own and took a sip, sighed with contentment and leaned back to wait for the rest of his team to join him.

Buck had been following Inez around, trying to impress upon the lovely senorita just how indispensable he'd been in the clearing of Vin's good name. Sadly for the lothario, JD was following Buck around and refuting everything he said as well as adding a few more facts for good measure. Inez merely rolled her eyes and sighed in a long suffering way, turning every now and then when Buck issued a licentious invitation to state firmly and unequivocally, "NUNCA!".

Josiah and Nathan had been standing near the doorway, laughing at Buck and JD's antics, but they made their way over to where Chris sat once they noticed him. Each taking up their drink, they toyed with it as they waited for the others to sit with them.

Discretely struggling free of Nettie's clutches his face a flaming shade of red and his blue eyes bright with unshed tears, Vin gulped and nodded to the crowd of people gathered around. Tiny and Yosemite Anderson were there with their wives and multiple children. Mrs Potter and her children were in attendance, still in their mourning attire, but smiling for him. Virgil Watson and his wife were there, beaming happily. Even Wendell from the wand shop had come to celebrate with him.

Neldy was there in her best party frock, dancing around his legs and clapping her hands in delight. Unable to help herself, the house elf threw her arms around Vin's knees and cried in her squeaky voice, "Oh Master Vin, I's so happy for you. Now you's free like Neldy." Gulping down the emotions threatening to erupt, Vin knelt down to give the excitable elf a quick, careful hug.

Arbitrator Travis sat quietly at a small table with his wife, Evie, and his grandson, Billy. All were still in sombre mourning attire also, with young Billy wearing navy in deference to his age. Mary sidled in past the group gathered around Vin, as she stepped from the hearth and hurried over to take the empty chair next to Billy.

Inez stopped her fussing at Buck as she neared Vin, who had just stood up to look for Chris, and grabbed the lanky Texan's surprised face between her hands, proceeding to kiss him soundly on the lips. Stunned silence settled over the Saloon until the kiss ended and, without releasing his face, Inez beamed at him, saying,"Felicitaciones por vaciar su nombre, Señor Vin".*

Hooting and jeering erupted, with everyone applauding Vin and teasing Buck, both of whom were speechless for entirely different reasons. Inez gave Ezra a cheeky wink and sashayed over to check on the drinks.

Laughing heartily, Ezra took the arm of his still stunned Texan brother and led him over to the table where even the grim Chris Larabee was laughing, making him look ten years younger and bringing out his good looks. Forcing Vin to sit in the seat beside Chris, Ezra shook his head and took the seat on Vin's right, still chuckling as he nodding a greeting to Josiah who sat to his right. Josiah and Nathan were also chuckling, more at the dazed look on Vin's face, as the Texan's hand came up to brush his fingers over his tingling lips, than anything else.

JD came bounding over and took a seat next to Nathan, before Buck came over to take the vacant seat between Chris and JD, still casting disbelieving looks at a smug Inez and mumbling, "What does she see in that scrawny-assed Texan, when she could have a strapping stud like me?"

"Have to say, it's nice to see a witch not fall for Buck's baloney," said Chris, as he ran his finger along the rim of his newly refilled shot glass. "Only times I've seen it happen in the past were with witches who didn't drive stick, if you know what I mean, but that kiss proved me wrong. Guess she's just immune to the Big Dog."

His head snapping, as cobalt blue eyes honed in on his unusually cheerful friend, Buck's moustache bristled with indignation as he said, "Immune? I ain't some sorta disease, Chris!"

Seeing JD's mouth open, Ezra hastily cut off what would no doubt have been a comment that would have lowered the tone even further, with the mysterious comment of, "We must steer clear of the Sirens, their enchanting song, their meadow starred with flowers."

Understanding dawned in Josiah's eyes as he turned to gaze at Inez with freshly opened eyes as she approached the table, rumbling, "Inez has Veela ancestry too, or is it Siren?"

"No Josiah, I have xana blood flowing in my veins," announced Inez proudly, tossing her hair back from her shoulders. "My Tantara Abuela was a xana from Cangas de Onís. In my family, it is told that a baby was born to the family after many years of infertility, but the nina was sickly so they arranged to have her baptised as quickly as possible, as the healers thought she would not live long. The morning of the baptism, her papa went to her crib expecting his child to have died in the night, as he had expected every morning since her birth, but there in the crib he was amazed to find a healthy, bright-eyed nina. She was named Selena in honour of the nearby river Sella, as well as the fact that she was brought to them by moonlight. It was always suspected that she was a xanino, but the parents did not care. All they cared for was that they had a bright, healthy, happy child, even if it was for a much shorter time than a normal child, as xaninos grow up very quickly. Selena grew to be a great beauty, marrying a local non-magical hero and they had many children. Some stayed in Spain, some travelled to the new world. My Bisabuela came to Mexico with her parents to start a new life, just as I came to America to start mine. She met a brujo and married him, starting a family and so it goes on. I have yet to find my love though."

JD's eyes were huge and glowing as he burst out, "But what happened to the first baby? And what's a Xana? And a brujo? And.."

Winking at Inez, Buck kept his hand firmly over his young friend's mouth and said, "It's alright, darlin'. You don't have to tell us anymore."

Smiling fondly at the irrepressible pair, Inez told them, "I feel no shame regarding my family, Senor. The original baby born most likely died in the night, JD. Xana are not malicious creatures in Cangas de Onis – they do not kill or eat little children, but they do not produce milk so they must find places for the babies with human women or witches or they would starve. Most embrace the new child, although you can force it to reveal its true form by putting some pots and egg shells close to the fireplace. A xanino will say, 'Yo nací hace cien años, y desde entonces no he visto tantas cáscaras de huevo cerca del fuego!.'

Seeing the puzzled looks on the faces of everyone but Vin, Josiah and Ezra, Inez explained, "That means 'I was born one hundred years ago, and since then I have not seen so many egg shells near the fire!'. So I am told anyway, but I have never seen it happen. The Xana blood has thinned over the years, but it still leaves me immune to the magicks of other creatures such as those with Veela blood."

"But…"

Replacing the hand that JD had temporarily dislodged Buck tutted at his friend and then smiled soppily at Inez. She had just become even more of a challenge to him and therefore even more attractive.

Rolling his eyes, knowing what Buck was thinking, Ezra took pity on the overly curious boy and explained, "JD, a xana is a type of water nymph found in the north of Spain. From what I've read, they have hypnotic voices that can be heard on Spring and Summer nights. Those called by the voice will feel a sense of peace and love if they are pure of heart, but will feel a sense of suffocation if not and the wicked will often go insane. Xana offer water to travellers, or sometimes great treasure. Really, the reports are all very conflicting. All you need to know is that Inez has something in her DNA that allows her to resist the lure of Buck's Veela DNA. And I believe the answer to your other question is that brujo is Spanish for a male witch, just as bruja is the female equivalent."

"You've got Veela blood?" Screeched JD, as he turned to stare incredulously at the handsome man next to him, this last information too much for him to take in.

"Gawd, just shout it to everyone why don't ya, boy!" Slapping the back of JD's head, Buck decided to get the attention back it was supposed to be. He stood up and raised his shot glass, shouting, "Everyone! I propose a toast! To Vin Tanner, a hell of a good wizard and an even better friend!"

All that could be heard was the scraping of chairs across floorboards before everyone in the room chorused, "To Vin Tanner! May the gods bless him!"

"And all who sail in me," muttered Vin as he threw back his shot of bourbon, bright red with embarrassment and slumped in his chair, causing a wave of laughter to roll out.

Brought back to the present by a soft hand on his shoulder, Vin looked up to find that Ezra had come looking for him.

"Mind if I join you, Vin?"

"Hell, Ez, ya own everything including the ground I'm sitting on, the beer I'm drinking, and the clothes I'm wearing. Reckon ya can do what ya like," mumbled Vin, watching as Achacius stretched luxuriously and displayed all his very sharp, white teeth in an enormous yawn before slinking over Vin's lap to greet Ezra.

"Nevertheless, I do not own you, so it is only polite to ask," replied Ezra, eying Vin shrewdly to see if the younger wizard was upset or hungover. When Vin looked up at him with a wan smile, he decided it was the latter and patted Vin on the knee sympathetically.

"The others stirring?" Vin croaked, his voice not used to the singing and carousing that he'd indulged in the night before.

Smiling brightly, Ezra petted Achacius in long even strokes as the catzel oozed over his lap bonelessly.

"Let's see. Josiah was still in bed, having overindulged last night in a truly shameless fashion, and was snoring like a grampus - albeit a mute grampus as Nathan tells me that he was forced to use the Silencio charm on him in the wee hours in self defence of his hearing. Nathan has been up for an hour, since he never drinks to excess and was feeling quite chipper when I left him concocting some sort of hangover cure for the others. As you may or may not know, Buck and JD bunked in together, which worked out well as our ever jovial friend has a long history of dealing with the hangovers of others. Having dealt with the young lad's initial sickness earlier last night, he was awoken this morning by the sounds of JD's renewed misery. One of the wonderful things about being Buck Wilmington – he told me whilst holding JD's hair back - was the lack of hangover, regardless of how much he drank. Mind you, I've never seen him drink a huge amount but it was still a blessing. Luckily for his friends, he also had a strong stomach. The last of our merry band is currently sitting at the kitchen table, slit-eyed and mean as a snake with his own substantial hangover, clutching a large cup of black coffee with the zealotry of a Knight Templar gripping the Holy Grail. Neldy was being extraordinarily careful not to make any undue noise as she prepared breakfast, knowing that my brooding cousin was in quite a lot of pain, albeit self-inflicted," reported Ezra cheerfully.

Casting a resentful, bloodshot eye at the immaculately groomed wizard next to him, Vin growled, "Guessing ya don't git hangovers neither."

"It's a curious thing, given how much and how often I imbibe, but no I do not. I believe it to be due to the fact that I only drink quality alcohol. And genetics, of course. I come from a long line of drinkers, so perhaps the reason we're considered 'blue bloods' is more to do with the alcohol content than any prestigious lineage," chuckled Ezra, playfully patting Achacius in the face with the catzel's tail then laughing joyfully at the look of utter contempt the animal gave him.

Unable to help himself, Vin smiled at his brother's joy before chuckling.

"Come then, Neldy sent me out to get you in for breakfast. You know she feels that you are one morsel away from starvation at any given time, so let us not worry her further," said Ezra, pushing his pet from his lap before leaping to his feet with what Vin considered an obscene amount of energy.

Taking the hand offered to him, Vin stood and stared at Ezra for a moment, reflecting on the fact that the green eyes looking back at him quizzically belonged to a wizard whom he know regarded as a brother. Someone who had taken him in, sheltered him, fed him, clothed him, and cleared his name. Without Ezra, he'd never have been offered a position as an Auror. Suddenly his gratitude overwhelmed him and he threw his arms around the slightly shorter wizard and hugged the stuffing out of him.

Seeming to understand, Ezra just chuckled breathlessly and patted Vin's back as he hugged him with only slightly less fervour. "Come Vin, the others are waiting on us."

Reluctantly letting Ezra go, Vin turned to look up towards the hill. There on the porch stood the other five men. Not quite brothers yet, but friends with the potential to be family.

Fini

* "Felicitaciones por vaciar su nombre, Señor Vin" – translated "Congratulations on clearing your name, Mr Vin"

** "We must steer clear of the Sirens, their enchanting song, their meadow starred with flowers" is Robert Fagles' rendering of _Odyssey_ 12.158–9.

*** In Asturias (North Spain) there is a legend about the Xana, a sort of nymph who used to live near rivers, fountains and lakes, sometimes helping travellers on their journeys. The Xanas were conceived as little female fairies with supernatural beauty. They could deliver babies, "xaninos," that were sometimes swapped with human babies in order to be baptized. The legend says that in order to distinguish a "xanino" from a human baby, some pots and egg shells should be put close to the fireplace; a xanino would say: "I was born one hundred years ago, and since then I have not seen so many egg shells near the fire!". - Wikipedia 


End file.
